Rebel, Rebel
by Moon Witch '96
Summary: Ariel Lager is not a rebel, but the thought of an intellectually stunted life following in her parents' footsteps makes her give into the impulsive decision into joining StarFleet. She wants a fulfilling life of research, healing people, and to discover new animals. She just happens to meet Jim Kirk, Nyota Uhura, and Leonard McCoy on the shuttle flight to the Academy instead. OC.
1. Glouriously Uncertain

**Glorious Uncertainty**

" _You want more, and you want it fast…" Rebel Rebel, David Bowie, 1974_

She was nervous. She was buckling up with trembling hands and felt a twist in her stomach when the buckle made an audio click. It was a necessary restraint to keep her from bolting and changing her mind. It was physical and final, bounding her to a decision she had made on a dangerous, wonderful, whim.

 _This was it_ , she thought, _I'm doing this. No, take backs, Lager._

She was about to commit herself to one of the most prestigious institutions, she was joining Starfleet. She didn't know what had possessed her to do it- She was all set for university, got into the school her Professor parents had dreamed for her since she was the size of a pea in her mother's womb. It had all been written in stone since her parents had decided her course in life: she was going to an Ivy League school, she was going to graduate as valedictorian, and she was going to work herself through years of grueling Academia until she was Dean of her Department.

She was supposed to be packing for her move to school tomorrow, not sitting in a shuttle hundreds of miles away. Her parents, of course, were friends with the teachers at the school she had been accepted to, and they would ease her into the new grind that would come from college life, guide her away from the seedier side to focus on her studies. No parties, no binge drinking or recreational drugs would dare come near her(not that she particularly needed someone to guide her away from that).

Her life was all set for her.

She _would_ be successful; she was intelligent, hard-working, and timely in all of her worth ethic. She already had good connections to the scene of academia, she wouldn't be hard-pressed to find a job as a Professor of whatever she chose, of where-ever she chose. She would make it far in the world her parents had raised her in.

Her destiny was set, and it looked to be a great one.

Ariel Lager had decided, just a few hours ago, late last night, as she looked around at the bedroom that she had occupied for nearly all of her childhood, full of ready to go empty storage units, that destiny was greatly _overrated_. From the highly polished wooden floors to the crisp white walls her mother favored, to the small bits of herself that she had struggled to integrate into the sterile surroundings: she did not see anything that screamed loss in the fact that she was about to move to the university dormitory. This had never felt like her room- she was hardly in it all year because of her parents- and they had seen no point in allowing freedom of expression to a child that could potentially damage property value when they hardly occupied this space.

And really, the fact that most of her future was going to be exactly like that room had terrified her.

It was a quiet, stern room that meant little to her, despite all of the years spent here. Ariel had stayed awake late into the night, she was supposed to be packing all of her worldly belongings for tomorrow, but she had instead had just stared around in a haze. Then, she had gotten up off of the gleaming wooden floors, hands steady and blinking rapidly, and stuffed all of her important electronics, jewelry, precious knickknacks, and her toiletries into a backpack. She packed a large antique trunk that had housed her few antique books with as many clothes and shoes as she could fit along with them and the ones she couldn't bare to leave behind. She had put the pack onto her back firmly, picked up the trunk, her violin vase, thrown them out of her window, and crawled out after them.

She had been the perfect child, never one to make a big fuss always brushed her teeth, made it to her violin lesson on times, and did her homework. She had never stepped a toe out of line, never really seen a need to. She wasn't the rebellious type, she could see the logic and care that her parents were putting into to make her have a good, decent life. But somehow, last night something had snapped inside of her, she had still packed all the things that meant something to her, and gone to her best friend Dara Lee's window next door, throwing rocks in such a cliche way to get her attention.

Dara had grunted in her bed, rolled over, tumbled out in her large over-sized shirt she had stolen from a few boyfriends back, groaning as she scratched her head. She had blinked when she spotted Ariel, taken in her skimpy sleeping shorts and t-shirt combination (a Christmas gift from Dara because she thought that Ariel needed to show more skin), jacket and boots(she didn't have time to change, that only meant more time to think, more to change her mind). Then, she had just smiled, more of a smirk really, and leaned against the frame when she had opened the window.

"What are you doing, Fish Girl?" she had asked, using the nickname she had gotten from an ancient movie they both adored, her narrow eyes stern and that damn smirk on her face. They had flickered to her backpack, to her violin and to the trunk she had gifted her last year.

Ariel hadn't known exactly, but she knew for once in her eighteen years of life that she was doing something for herself.

"Something crazy, Princess," she had responded, and her heart had beat faster with anticipation, "And I need your help with the crazy part."

Dara Lee was all that Ariel wasn't- She was wild, she was bold, and she was street smart and she was tough as nails. Her parents had been on their last limb concerning Dara, simply because she had been kicked out of all the schools in her last city, and had bought a house in her neighborhood eleven years ago in the city because of its good schools(so many that they would last until she graduated even if she was kicked out five times a year) in hopes that one of them was what they needed to sort out their daughter. She went to several private schools and was subsequently kicked out of most of them(with an exception of the last one, which Dara had simply decided to finish her primary education), was a kickboxer and could drink to oblivion. Dara would either rule the world or she would simply just dominate it.

Ariel was quiet, book-smart and had a knack and love for science. She wasn't one to rebel, could hardly drink a beer without feeling queasy. She hated exercise and had a horrendously low stamina. She was most at home researching and hated to raise her voice in confrontation, and had no drive to party or pull epic pranks that lead to being kicked out of school. Ariel had never even gone to school at all- her parents did not see the merit of social skills being constructed, and instead had given her a plethora of the finest tutors and their own skills to educate her.

How Ariel and Dara had become friends was a mystery to even them, despite the fact that they had been next door neighbors for eleven years, but Dara and Ariel just had learned to accept it as one of the universe's strangest quirks. The subsequent meeting had been when Ariel had been practicing her violin, and Dara(unpacking her things) had jumped the fence, climbed through her open window, sat on the ledge, swinging her tan legs and bluntly said that she sucked. Ariel had blinked, raised an eyebrow and asked her to do better, offering the instrument. Dara had smirked, and started to sing, using her own personal instrument, and had done better. When Ariel had joined in with the violin, the other girl had smiled, kindly, shyly in a way that Ariel would never see again in the eleven years of their friendship.

They had been inseparable since.

Because despite the complete polarity of their personalities, they knew and understood the other perfectly. They didn't try to 'better' the other girl. Dara didn't press Ariel to do crazy things, only asked once, and Ariel did the same thing when it came to asking Dara to think before she acted. On occasion, the other would listen. Just asking once, they didn't need more than that and let the other do as they saw fit, which was something neither of them got from their parents. Last night, all Dara had to do was smirk even bigger, before she had jumped out of her window, shoes and car keys in hand.

"Don't you dare puss out, you smart bitch."

And so here she was in Riverside Shipyard, miles away from her home and her parents. They were probably just now waking up, with just a simple note on their PADDs of where they could find her if they so desired. Dara had driven her to the airport, and had refused to allow Ariel to buy the ticket to get her to the nearest and farthest Starfleet Port; one that was far enough away that her parents couldn't get to her in time, but close enough so she could get to San Francisco in time for the opening ceremony and the general admission(while she could get in on later admission, Ariel didn't want to lose an opportunity to see and meet all of her classmates as they entered, possibly find someone to room with, and give herself time to 'puss out'). Dara had given her a hug so fierce that Ariel was sure that she had cracked her ribs, she had returned the embrace just as hard.

"You boldly go and get into the Stars, Fish Girl," those were the last words Dara had said to her, after pressing a credit stick into her unwilling hand, and pushed(very hard, mind you) her towards the shuttle gate.

And now here she was, foot jiggling as she waited for the shuttle to take off.

"Nervous?" asked a kind voice, and a pretty girl, across from her, and already dressed in the Academy Uniform, was smiling at her.

Ariel licked her lips.

"You could say that," she smiled back, lips pressed closed and that made the woman across from her smile larger, making her brown eyes shine.

She is tall and lean, with smooth, even skin that is the color of the perfect cafe au lait. Her hair is pulled back, and her blood red uniform is crisp and clean. There is a calculative and easiness to the way she moved, a confidence that all but oozes out of her. But she is kind enough to try to reassure a complete stranger, even dressed as she is. She must've had taken in her cotton pj's strewn with a red-headed mermaid, dry, stringy hair thrown back into a messy bun, the mismatched socks peeking from the tops of her lace-up boots, the rumpled jacket that she had picked at random. But the young woman seemed to have dismissed that to try and comfort her, which Ariel appreciated. The guy at the signup office had looked at her as if she was crazy until he had brought up her records.

"We'll be fine. It isn't that long of a flight."

Ariel was no stranger to shuttle travel- her parents were high in demand across the world and went to conventions and the like all throughout her childhood(the trouble of being homeschooled). It was more the fact of committing her biggest act of serious rebellion in her life that was making her fidget. But well, she couldn't unload that on a complete stranger, now could she, even one as kind as the girl across her?

"Thank you. It isn't what's making me nervous, but thanks for the assurance."

The girl blinked, and curiously asked:

"What is making you nervous?"

"Teenage rebellion and complete disregard for carefully laid plans," she answered, keeping it vague, but honest. She couldn't help the small twitch of her lips as she says this, but she forcibly stopped herself, easing her face into her careful mask.

The girl chuckled, smiling again and bringing out the fact that she had lovely pearly white teeth.

"Nyota Uhura."

Ariel smiled timidly, barely flashing her teeth, before she tempered it and leaned as far over as she could in her seat. Uhura stands up, smiling, and grasps her hand with her long, elegant one. Ariel is relieved and leans back on her backrest.

"Ariel Lager," she gave Uhura as firm of a shake that she could give already strapped to her seat.

Uhura's returning shake _is_ firm, though brief. She leans her hip against one of the empty seats next to Ariel's seat and smiles again.

"What are you hoping to study, Lager?"

Ariel blinks at the question and feels a relief so hard that it if she hadn't been sitting she would have lost her balance. Because someone was _asking_ her. Her lips are trembling as she reveals her biggest secret, held so damn close to her chest all this time, not even Dara knew this:

"I want to be a Doctor." she was smiling now, full on beaming as her stomach flutters with excitement. Because she _could_ damn it, and because she had always found the way organisms function fascinating, wanted to help people in need: it also happened to be a challenge in Starfleet as it was a four* year course versus the regular six, and focused more on Xenological Medicine for obvious reasons(and Ariel was determined to do it in _three_ ), "What about you?"

"Xenolinguistist," she says, and her smile here is smug and so sure of herself that Ariel respects that, even if she hadn't had that sort of drive for most of her life.

She had been herded most of her life, but well, here she was. Blazing her own trail, so to speak.

"That's amazing, how many languages do you know?"

"Most main Terran languages, as well as a couple aliens ones. I hope to become the Head of Communication on a starship," again, there was a confidence and a drive that Ariel envies, "What about you, Lager, what's your ambition in Starfleet?"

"A Doctor on the medical staff that doubles as a Xenobiologist on a starship, hopefully."

Ariel does not want to be the Head Medical Officer, simply because that is so high on the hierarchy that she would not have much wiggle room. She's seen what responsibility like that does to a person, the constrictions of authority that Ariel isn't really keen on having. She can respect it, envy those in that position, but felt as if she had the wrong temperament. She rather be a Doctor first, a Xenologist second, and not have to deal with paperwork.

"That's a tough course, and you want to be Xenobiologist, not just medicine?" she asks, and she's frowning at her.

Nyota Uhura sees a young woman with a carefully blank face that is betrayed by bouncing legs and twisting hands. She is unassuming, thin little thing, fairly pretty, but wouldn't have stood out if it weren't for her odd attire against all the Academy Reds. Her hair is a light strawberry blonde, more of a wheat with a barest hint of a red, her face has small features, small lips, small nose, but very expressive, wide eyes that contrast to the stillness of the rest of her face. The ultimate poker face, Uhura thinks, even her voice is soft and precise. She wonders why this 'lion of God*' wanting to be a Doctor is becoming one in Starfleet. Most don't take that route, preferring the longer six-year course offered at regular universities before joining the 'Fleet.

"So is becoming a Xenolinguist Communication Officers, you don't need one to be the other," she counters, raising a simple brow, and her light eyes shine with a secret challenge that makes part of Nyota immediately leaps up. She can feel a kinship of ambition and comradery.

She blinks, and then smirks.

"You're ambitious."

"I could say the same to you," and Ariel feels her lips curve into a slight smirk in response. She wonders as she pulls back her smirk if her nerves are so shot that she is so loose with her facial expressions. Faintly, in her head, she can see her mother's fierce scowl.

The hopeful Xenolinguist chuckles and knocks her hip lightly against Ariel's shoulder in a startlingly casual show of friendliness. They talk for a several more minutes(Ariel had arrived on the shuttle an hour before it could even be boarded, and Uhura had been one of the first people behind Ariel once they were allowed inside and had more than an hour to kill), general stories of their backgrounds. Ariel is treated to Uhura's life* as being split between African Great Lakes area and the North American Continent, visiting her Swahili grandparents and learning the language that sparked her curiosity about others, and finding her lifelong passion. By the age of ten, she had learned more than a dozen languages and was devouring more and more as she grew, determined to be fluent in as many as she could. She had started learning alien languages at the ripe old age of fourteen when she had found an old Romulan to English dictionary at a library.

And Ariel tells her of her somewhat stifled upbringing, and her discovery of Xenobiology in a very similar situation, and her volunteer work at a local hospital that had made her see how much potential good she could do by caring for others. Her fascination at the difficulty of dozens of anatomies known to the Federation, and extensive knowledge of treatments, and medical tech that was precise and cantankerous.

"Do you have anyone to room with?" asks Uhura near the end of their hour wait.

Ariel blinks, and feels her face heat up, hope rising in her chest at the thought that she could already have a roommate.

"I don't. I was actually hoping to-"

Ariel is interrupted by the fact that Uhura makes a clear face of distaste, nose wrinkling, eyes narrowing. Ariel sees from the corner of her eyes as the seat next to her is taken. Ariel blinks at the abrupt shift in her mood, looking at her side to see a guy, a little older than them sit down gingerly, face covered in bruises and a split lip. The bruises and cuts do not diminish his handsome face by much, nor the cockiness she sees there as he spots Uhura. His dark blonde hair is closely cropped, and he has tan skin beneath all of his bruises, and blue eyes piercing. He leans towards Uhura as she rushes away, strapping into the seat she had been before she had come over to talk to Ariel. His eyebrows are wiggling, and really gleeful at Uhura's scowl.

"Never did get that first name," he says, and his smirk pulls at his cut lip, and the man doesn't even flinch.

Uhura rolls her eyes, looks towards Ariel.

"We will discuss this after the flight Lager," she snaps in a brisk, but apologetic tone. Then, she turns her head directly away from the guy, stalks to her seat and starts talking to a girl next to her. Ariel is bewildered at the change in the woman's attitude, but puts that aside when she hears shouting, turning towards the noise:

"You need a doctor," says a female officer, eyes exasperated and pulling with the help others at a flailing man.

He is physically straining at the restraining hands of several officers, his chiseled face(did everyone joining Starfleet have to be gorgeous!?) distressed and twisting as he wiggled forward.

"I told you people, I don't need a doctor. I am a doctor," he snaps, and his hands are clutched at a silver hip flask, trembling as the group of officers grab at his armpits, and escort him away from the back of the ship.

"You need to get back to your seat."

"I had one in the bathroom with no windows," sulks the Doctor, and he makes a break for it away from the officers, but the group of struggling officers simply snatch him back.

"You need to get back to your seat, now!"

"I suffer from aviophobia. It means fear of dying in something that flies."

The female officers only crosses her arms, lips pursed.

"Sir, for your own safety, sit down or else I'll make you sit down."

The surly man growls.

"Fine," he snaps, sitting down on the blond's other side and taking a mean swig of his flask.

"Thank you," says the officer, nodding, and turning away.

"This is Captain Pike. We've been cleared for takeoff," says a male voice over the com, and Ariel feels a rush of excitement flare, her boots tapping on the grating as the shuttle warms up.

"I may throw up on you," says the Doctor to the blond, face grim as he quickly straps in.

"I think these things are pretty safe," responds the blond.

The doctor laughs, a hysterical one, and then turns to the blond with a snarl:

"Don't pander to me, kid. One tiny crack in the hull and our blood boils in thirteen seconds. A solar flare might pop up and cook us in our seats. And wait 'til you're sitting pretty with a case of Andorian shingles. See if you're still so relaxed when your eyeballs are bleeding. Space is disease and danger after darkness and silence."

He hisses this with terror mounting in his gruff voice, and while Ariel knew all of this beforehand, hearing it from someone else still makes a part of her flinch.

"Well, I hate to break this to you, but Starfleet operates in space," says the blond, blunt and with a gleefully raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, well, got nowhere else to go. The ex-wife took the whole damn planet in the divorce. All I've got left is my bones."

Here, the doctor takes another swig of his flask.

"Jim Kirk," says the man, and he extends a hand. He sounds firm and friendly.

"McCoy, Leonard McCoy," says the doctor, hesitating for a fraction of second, before they shake, and he hands over the flask.

Kirk takes a swig.

Amused beyond belief, Kirk looks at her, possibly because she's staring at the humorous exchange, or because she happens to be next to him. He smirks, flask in hand, doing a leisurely little survey of her from the tip of her scuffed, boot-clad toes to the top of her strawberry-blonde head. He takes a measured sip and offers it to her. Leonard McCoy snaps it out of his hand even before she can make a move, and takes a swig himself.

"What about you, what's with the pj's?"

Ariel licked her lips and shrugged as both men turned to stare at her. The grumpy, fidgety man, squinted at her, eyes narrowing. Kirk did the same, but his eyes were calculating, and Ariel figured that this cocky man was that for a reason- it wasn't just his looks- but rather the brain behind his lovely face. Dara looks at the world like that, cavalier and so far down that she could have things figured out in fifteen seconds flat. He takes her in for a second longer as she stays silent, unsure and rather curious to why Uhura, who had seemed very nice and generally friendly, to have been so honest and blunt in her dislike. Especially since the worst trait Kirk seemed to have was being a little on the cocksure said, and had actually tried to reassure the frightened and pissed off doctor.

"Runaway, you are a runaway!" said Kirk, and he was grinning as he stared at her. Cocky sure, a bit of a rogue, but Dara was like that, too.

Ariel feels a bit of pang thinking of her best friend. But she laughs, a bit delighted at the assessment, and liking the genuine glee that courses through her at the fact that she's doing what she wants. She wiggles her toes.

"That's one way of putting it," she muses, resting her head back as she feels the shuttle start to power on,"I mean, is it running away if you're a legal adult?"

Kirk smirked(he seemed to like doing that). He moves his head back but has it twisted to look at her. His eyes are assessing, never losing their calculative edge despite his jovial attitude. McCoy's eyes are looking at her, but his lips are pressed into a tight line as the subtle rumble of shuttle starts.

"Yes. In fact, that's a bigger commitment, no one has a right to drag you away."

Ariel blinks and feels that nervous bunch of butterflies in her stomach twist at her. She thinks of her parents' reaction, at the thought of what she had decided to throw away.

"You okay, kiddo?"Kirk is sure of his assessment and gives her a look that shows genuine worry that most wouldn't associate with cocky hot guys.

Ariel wonders if she is. Because she's throwing away from the future she had been working for all her life- Starfleet is not a step down by any means, but it is much larger, much bolder than anything she has ever done, has ever been expected to be. Her parents are not cruel, they are just narrow, concentrated, and Ariel has always felt a sort of restlessness at the thought of the 'Grand Plan'. So well thought out, and everything her parents knew, everything she had grown up on… Her will had been suppressed, but always lingering in the back of her mind, being encouraged and fueled by Dara. Because she wants to move beyond her parents' world, wants to see the stars and wants to innovate, explore, _evolve_.

"Yeah. I really am," she responds, beaming despite her nerves, because she is so damn eager for what the future may hold.

Because the future is uncertain, and that is _glorious_.

* * *

 **AN: I do not own Star Trek, that belongs to its production and broadcasting company.**

 **I own Ariel Lager, Dara Lee, their families, and this plot bunny.**

 **Edited: 4 Novemeber, 2017**

 **So I've been reading a lot of Star Trek fanfiction lately, rewatching the OG series and tried to find a fanfiction that went through the Academy years at StarFleet from the 2009 reboot. But I am infinitely picky when it comes to what I read and haven't found too many ones. Hence the start of Rebel, Rebel(Rest in Peace, David Bowie). This is going to be a very long, extensive fic that at the very least reach _Into Darkness_ , maybe into Beyond depending on how I feel at the end of that story arc, and when I watch the movie for myself. As of now, that means roughly sixty-eight chapters planned. **

**I want to explore the new, Kelvin timeline universe deeply and extensively using bits from OG, and what the movies provided. Ariel will be our guide throughout it.**

 ***(notes of things I feel I should explain)**

 **1*Now, it takes roughly eight years to get a general medical degree(if you take the regular, two-semester course, four years in general, and another four in medical school, give or take). I figured in the future, way down the line the years are shorter and more intensive courses to become a Doctor. StarFleet, of course, would be even more intense, and one of Ariel's weakness is ambition, so she is going to work herself to death to get her Medical degree and her smaller degree in Xenobiology: which I figured would be double-faceted of two things depending, a Doctor certified to care for aliens(which all StarFleet Doctors must be), and a zoologist. Ariel wants to be both types.  
2* 'Lion of God' is the Hebrew meaning of the name Ariel and generally used as a male name. Ariel's mother is of Jewish descent, her father is Swedish. By the way, Lager means 'bay', or 'laurel'. I'd always figured that Nyota Uhura, who's cream and butter in the Kelvin timeline is several different languages, would have a hobby of learning the origin and meaning of words, and also names. Which is why she know's the meaning of Ariel's name.**

 **3* Uhura's history is extremely vague in all variations of Star Trek that I've come across. Even online, she has very little info out about her origins. Plan and simple that gives me a lot of room to expand on her in this fanfiction. She is going to become Ariel's roommate, and subsequently will be a very big focus of the fic, which pleases me to no end because I love her character.**


	2. Hit the Ground Running

**Hit the Ground Running**

" _You got your cue lines..." Rebel, Rebel,_ David Bowie, 1974

The Welcoming Ceremony to StarFleet Academy is a serious, formal affair. It is all pomp and circumstance. So much so, that Ariel Lager wonders at the fact that they're not playing the ancient twenty-century song over the various speakers, surprises her. Ariel is sitting calmly waiting for the Ceremony to end, decked from head to toe in the formal Academy Red. The uniform is slim and form fitting(the tightest thing Ariel ever wore outside her pj's), cut with military boxy shoulders. She almost wants to tug at the close closer at her neck, but so far she's restrained the urge. Her long unruly hair pushed back into a semi-passable braid(thanks to Uhura's helpful hands), and her black boots that were issued with the uniform are shinned to mirror like quality.

She looks every inch the Cadet she has become, and it's a novel, gratifying feeling( _her merit, her choice_ ).

But, she can't deny her anxiousness, though, because after this they will head back to their dorms and then they will meet with their Academic Supervisor(her's is a Christopher Pike, a StarFleet Captain that was taken a brief retirement to train some recruits, and because he had been promised a new vessel if he did it). She is getting to decide- the decision to run away to Starfleet is due to impulsive action, but Ariel is not an impulsive creature by nature. She does not regret it, but she can't deny that making decisions to make up for the impulsiveness is going to determine her entire future.

To finally behave as a fully functioning adult citizen is a daunting thought despite the fact that this is what she wanted. She's eager to follow through and wished she had time to research before she signs up for her classes. Hopefully, Captain Pike(strangely enough the same man that got her here) would steer her in the right direction. Ariel listens intently to each speech given, trying to ignore the virtual anvil over her head and her own insecurities creeping up on her.

It helps not to make a fool of herself, she supposes, that her hands are clasped firmly in her lap, and her legs are hidden by the row of cadets sitting in front of her. While generally, Ariel did not care for the opinion of others, her entire future rides on how well she gets along with her peers and teachers. She rather not make a nuisance of herself with her tapping toes and twisting her fingers together. It was hard not get a stare each time her toes started to tap out a song in an attempt to get out her restless energy that she usually tries to suppress.

She had been surprised at the current speaker, a Vulcan, who had been introduced as Commander Spock. She would have dismissed him at a passing glance had she walked passed him(handsome, but nearly everyone at Starfleet seems to be), but when she focused, even from a distance, the differences are clear; a posture so straight and firm, hands clasped behind his back, upturned pointed ears, slanted eyebrows, and skin that has the faintest hint of a green undertone. She hadn't known that one had joined the Fleet(first in its history and a pleasant change after the bad blood caused by its cousin species), but considering the fact that he seemed young, and was a teacher just spoke of his more bookish inclination.

She figured he hadn't been back to Space for extended periods of time since his arrival on Earth. Hence her reason for not knowing, simply because, for one, he is not a teacher that teaches what she's here for (he had been introduced as a Professor of Mathematics, Advance Physics, and funnily enough, Xenolinguistics, and had connections to nearly all departments _except_ those connected to Medicine). Her desperate, secret readings of various journals and articles since she was thirteen years old, accessed from her parents' university logins, from StarFleet made no mention of him ... Her focus had been mostly recent voyages, and advancement in various medical fields.

Commander Spock's voice is calm, collected, and of course, hardly lifting in tone. She envies that, the complete control he has over himself, eyes firm and unmoving over the general crowd of new recruits, hands clasped behind his back in firm propriety. It must come naturally, and to Ariel, it had come through her through years of suppression and stern words from her parents. His words are not emotive, but hold a serious dedication to what he is doing here at StarFleet, encouraging(coming off more as an expectation from the logic driven being) Cadets to take their education seriously, and to remember the intensive tests they had taken to get in the first place and the achievement of belonging to the Academy that should extend to the dedication of graduating it.

Ariel remembers the tests, taking them in secret while Dara ran interference: her parents thought she was attending a classical music symphony that day, invited by Dara and her brother, Darian (while her parents' mistrusted Dara, they like and trusted the older, calmer Darian to make sure they didn't do anything drastic, funnily enough, he had been the one to suggest to Ariel to take the test in the first place, being the Engineering Officer in the Fleet himself). At the time, she had done it simply because she had been curious at how well she would do(all her little rebellions had been inconsequential, little tests to prove herself beyond the sphere of ability her parents had made for her). She had not expected much, and when she had received the message on her PADD saying that she would be welcomed to the Academy at any time in the field she longed for, and the various ports around her area with a brief of the signing up formally, she had felt a sad flare of longing for something she thought she would never dare to do.

But she was here, listening with intense focus as the Vulcan spoke, hands clasped tightly in her lap and Nyota Uhura on her right, listening just as intently. Uhura had managed to find her as soon as they had been moved past the flood of people out of the shuttle, at the baggage claim, snatched her away from Kirk's 'call me Jim!' arm around her shoulders, and from Doctor McCoy...

The taller woman had seemed exasperated, rolling her eyes at Kirk's calls after them, even as Ariel had called back to both him and McCoy for politeness sake. The entirety of the shuttle, along with the rest of the few arriving shuttles were separated by gender, and their room assignments were being immediately arranged. Several people were pairing up, and that made a bit of unease flutter go into Ariel as both she and Uhura went towards the line of those without partners, just behind an Oiran girl. Just before they got up one of the many stations assigning rooms, Uhura had turned to her:

"Lager, want to room together?"she had said, the first hint of nervousness that Ariel had ever heard when they got nearer and nearer to the station.

Ariel had never been so relieved, the thought of rooming with anyone not as kind and interesting as Uhura was not pleasant. They had gotten along well, and while living together was a big step for mere strangers, Ariel rather not take a chance with someone who was completely unknown. At least Uhura seemed intelligent and dedicated, had a fascinating major that she could relate with, and seemed to have an amiable personality. She could do much worse, and it seemed that Uhura had come to the same conclusion.

"Yes. But please, call me Ariel. We are going to be in a tiny apartment for at least three years. First name basis is preferable."

The other woman had smiled, nodding at the usual time frame for those Cadets that were on a course to graduate early. She grabbed her violin case and extended a hand to help Ariel lug her trunk towards the line that belonged to those who wanted specific roommates.

"Alright. Call me Nyota in private. I prefer Uhura in public because I don't like everyone being so informal, it's one of the rudest things in America."said the young African(though she had lived most of her life in the United States of America, it was evident that her time in her homeland had shaped her manners immensely), rolling eyes and stiff shoulders.

Ariel nodded, and figuring she might as well get out of her way, started:

"Got Uhura, I'm looking forward to rooming with you. I'm terrible at cooking but I have a talent for finding wonderful take-out and clean so well it was as if everything is new. I like to practice my violin so I apologize ahead of time, and I keep odd hours, especially closing in exam periods. I won't steal your clothing or shoes. I will not touch your things unless to clean up, and if you touch my antique books you will die." she said this with all seriousness, and firm eyes.

Nyota's quirked brow is all humor.

"I'm an amazing cook, and I hate to clean, but I'm not a slob. I like to sing when I study, and sing in general, very loudly, so we're even. I doubt anything I own would fit you and vice versa. I won't touch your things unless I ask you first, and I expect the same of mine with the exception of cleaning. I would love to read your antique books as long as you read mine."

Ariel's answering brow raise is equally as humorous.

"We will set up a schedule for chores that we prefer and will do in our time here."she had prompted.

"Accepted and preferred. We will try to help each other as much as possible in the terms of academia, and it seems we both intend to graduate early."

"Yes, three years. A lofty goal in both our course to specialize in two professions*."

The smirk that Nyota had given her just before the assigning station had been one of comrades and Ariel had never been more glad of her decision.

"We will not fail. Not if we stick together, though I hope I'm right to assume that we will also be academic rivals of sorts."

"This, Cadet Uhura, is the start of a beautiful friendship."she had said simply, and the other woman had beamed.

Now, despite the fact that they are one of the few Cadets paying attention, Ariel figures as Commander Spock steps down, and yet another Officer goes to the podium, that both she and Nyota are ready to fall asleep of boredom and exhaustion. Pretty speeches are nice, but Ariel is running on three hours of sleep because of her first flight, and then the delayed flight last night, Nyota had probably been traveling more, simply because she had come from visiting her grandmother in Africa for the summer. Each Starfleet port had been hit, taking people along the route until they got to the last one, their shuttle had just happened to have parked itself in Riverside, Iowa, a thing that she was grateful for.

Last night Ariel and Nyota had arrived in their dorm, thrown their belongings(unlike her, Uhura had sent her things ahead of her and only had a small carry on, meaning all of her civilian clothes and her things were neatly pressed and already in place) in the general direction of their private closets. Nyota also already had her uniforms, having been given them before she had boarded the flight from Iowa, and had helped Ariel get her's last night before bed. They had both grabbed their formals ones, carefully laid out across their desks, and then collapsed on their identical beds. Nyota was luckily one of those people that needed noise to lull her to sleep, just like Ariel, and both of them had fallen asleep to soft jazz that Uhura swore by.

The ceremony had started promptly at 0600*, and it was closing at 1100, and frankly, Ariel was to the point of getting up and leaving the assembly hall. Uhura, bless her, looked to be in the same state of impatience, and made a face as the Officer stepped down. Her long fingertips tapped impatiently at the PADD in her lap.

"Please be the last one..."she murmured underneath her breath, and Ariel sighed as someone else stepped up.

"Imagine what it'll be like when we graduate."she muttered, and the young African looked over at her with a look of humor and dread.

"Pray, we have more patience."

"... And that concludes our Ceremony. Welcome Cadets, to Starfleet. May your years here serve you well in your service to the Federation. Dismissed."

With that, everyone stood with the synchronization of people who just sat in an auditorium for five hours, Uhura did a subtle little stretch of her muscles. Ariel wasn't as discreet, she rolled her head, ankles, wrists, and relished the small popping noises. She sighed slightly and followed the Cadet in front of her out of the row with Nyota following. Once they were outside in the courtyard, she turned to Ariel:

"Who was your Academic advisor?"

"Captain Christopher Pike"Ariel looked down at her PADD to check the hour she needed to meet him, "I see him at 1300. Your's?"

Nyota smiled and glanced at her own PADD.

"Captain Nancy Walker, 1400 appointment."

Ariel checked her PADD again and sighed in relief.

"We have time for lunch, shall we?"

They made a move to go, but suddenly Ariel froze as an arm came around her waist, the weight of a person bouncing on her making her stumble. She is grateful when the person's reflexes save her PADD from crashing to the ground, as sturdy as it is she rather not let something so vital encounter any blunt force trauma.

"Kiddo!"said Jim Kirk, and he gave a brief squeeze, making her stick to his decidedly muscular body.

The nickname Kirk had decided was her's had stuck, she mused. It had come up last night once again before she had introduced herself to him and McCoy. When the twenty-two-year-old man and the twenty-eight-year-old man had found out her age, they had seemed awkward to how to respond to her for a fraction of a second. The younger of the two had started to exclaim that it was the perfect nickname: it wasn't that weird in the Academy(in fact that was the average age), Uhura was also eighteen, but in comparison to him and Doctor McCoy she supposed she did seem young. A somewhat disgruntled Doctor Leonard McCoy was at his side now, and he gave a helpless sort of wave with the arm that was not gripping two PADDs, one was Kirk's no doubt.

"Hello, Cadet Lager."he said gruffly, but not unpleasantly.

"Doctor McCoy."she greeted, taking in his Academy uniform, and she figured that he must be taking classes to catch up with some the Xenobiological aspects his job in Starfleet would entitle, or he was aiming to become an officer. Perhaps both?

The Doctor looked remarkably better now that he was on solid ground, noted Ariel at his decidedly less sallow skin. He looked to be in a better mood too, though judging from his gruff face she imagined that he was of a more disgruntled deposition(unless it was Kirk that was making him feel that way?). Uhura made a small noise of distaste and looped her arm around Ariel's. She gave a small tug. Kirk simply dug in his heels, squeezing Ariel's side, a dig at Uhura no doubt. Again, she wondered where the bad blood on Uhura's part had occurred.

"Kirk, you can let go of my roommate."she said, tone curt.

Jim Kirk had a smirk that could make saints go crazy, noted Ariel, and she wondered briefly if she had really gone across the entire country only to find herself with a male version of Dara.

"Ariel and I made nice. She's nice, unlike you Cindy."

Uhura eyes narrowed.

"Cindy?"asked Ariel, confused.

"Since she refuses to give me her name, I'm going to keep guessing. Unless Uhura is your first name?"he prompted, raising a brow.

"It's not."Ariel replied, and was somewhat amused at Kirk's feigned look of hurt.

He turned to her, face very very close, and Ariel was glad that Dara and Darian were very physically affectionate or his nearness would have really bothered her. As it was, she very much wouldn't like to be quite this close to his chiseled face. If she inched forward even a millimeter, her cheek would touch his cheek.

"She told you. I mean, I met her at least two days ago. You met her last night."he said, and he pouted even as his warm breath went over her face.

Ariel blinked, and Uhura made a strangled noise.

"She didn't try to hit on me the second she saw me, or start a bar fight! Unhand her now Kirk or I swear-"

"Kiddo hasn't asked me to let go, and I never let a lady go unless she wants me too."he said simply, wiggling his brows.

"James, would you please let me go?"she interrupted before Uhura could hit the cavalier man.

She didn't think the young woman would, but something about James T. Kirk was especially crafted to annoy and rub people the wrong way. Casually, after another little squeeze, Kirk stepped back and was smiling as her roommate huffed.

"I told you to call me Jim."

Ariel found her lips twitching.

"Nicknames mean familiarity and affection. I met you last night, _James_."she stressed, and was pleased with the humorous eyebrow wiggle she got back.

"Fair enough. I'll get to know you better Ariel Lager, and I do mean better."

It was such a blunt, flirty statement that Ariel was used to getting. Dara and Darian often flirted with her because they were bored, and to 'toughen you up when you're out in the big bad world, with everyone wanting to take a bite of you, Fish Girl'. It was a joke for them and made her mother warn her to be careful around 'that wild Lee girl', and to avoid romantic entanglements. Ariel could tell that despite how freely Dara's sexuality followed, that their bond was strictly that of the most intimate of sisters. Darian was like her older brother as well, and though he was a little calmer than his sister, he was after all, still her brother, and it showed in those odd moments of flirtation. Kirk's attempt, unlike Dara and Darian's, was completely genuine, and Ariel was both amused and slightly flattered by it.

But, if her mother had taught her anything, she had taught her that a man like James Kirk could eat her alive.

"I doubt you can tempt me into an anatomy lesson, James, but I appreciate your intention to help me with my studies as a Doctor."she replied, dryly, and Kirk smirked.

"A sense of humor too? And here I thought you were all poker face and no fun at all."he said, and he looked unrepentant and happy.

"Doctor, huh?"asked Doctor McCoy, and he looked at her with shrewd interest.

"Yes."

"If you need any help with anything, ask me. It's been a while since I was in school, but I remember enough."he grunted harshly, and for the first time that day, Ariel felt a real smile form on her lips.

Jim saw the smile, it was quick but really, really bright. It brought attention to her pale face, made her wide, dark blue eyes sparkle. She wasn't bad looking, but her stoic nature was somewhat of a buzz kill to his libido because he wasn't used to it from a girl. He liked the pretty and the wild, liked the hard to get and they usually loved him. He was fair with consent, though- he only teased Uhura because she was prim and proper and those were the ones that had hidden depths and oh were they beautiful when they let go. He could take a hint, wasn't stupid, but he also loved riling people up, and Uhura was perfect for it.

Served her right for dismissing him.

Ariel was something else, though, not exactly prim and proper, just… Unmoved by his usually annoying attitude. Had this kind thing that made him wonder how she could look at the world so calmly because she looked at his, admittedly at times, stupid antics, with a still face and unmoving features. She had only smiled once last night when he had asked her if she was alright. People tended to smile a lot more than they thought, their faces twitched and morphed with every emotion. Ariel's face hardly moved, just an odd quirk of her brow or a faint twitch of her lips.

The girl was not emotive in general- very closed in- even her soft voice hardly changed in inflection. Like the sounds of an evenly beating drum. But her hands, they twisted when she didn't have them secured on her PADD, her toes tapped lightly. Jim knew the type, the socially awkward ones that hardly knew what to do with other people. Harsh parents, he decided, some sort of professionals by his guess of her speech patterns- sometimes they lapsed into a formality that had him wondering how the girl could be eighteen. But she wasn't completely horrible, he decided, like McCoy, rough around the edges(just in a different way) but she didn't seem to hate him on sight as much as Uhura did. Plus in his book that she took his antics in stride, had a faint trace of humor in her eyes each time her apparent roommate puffed up.

"We're leaving, come on, Lager."snapped said roommate, gripping her arm and tugging.

Lager obediently followed, but waved at them:

"James, Doctor McCoy."

"See you later, _Kiddo_!"he deliberately stressed his nickname for her, and planned then and there to catch up with the strawberry-blonde as soon as he could, "Let me know when we can study for anatomy together!"

The look that Uhura shot over her shoulder, he decided, was completely hilarious.

"Damn it, Jim, leave the poor girls alone."said McCoy, and he handed over his PADD.

Kirk never moved his gaze away from the departing girls, particularly their asses and swaying hips.

"Nah, Ariel seemed to like me. Let's go, Bones."

The Doctor followed behind him, and huffed:

"Stop calling me _that_."

Jim would do no such thing.

 **000000000**

Christopher Pike's office is where all the offices are, centered a little ways away from the rest of the school and near the offered employee apartments. Or so said her PADD as she made her way down a long highway. The hallways are a mixture of white, silver, and gray, smooth, clean glass and brutal modernity. It is a far cry from Universities, thinks Ariel, who despite the obliteration of many of the hallowed buildings in the Eugenic Wars, tries to mimic the feeling of old, old wisdom and old grace. It was beautiful of course, even if they probably got something wrong about the old buildings, but something about them always rang hollow to Ariel.

Maybe it was because her interest always laid in the future, not the past that had made her seen the buildings her parents frequented around the world as dull, nice to look at but held no true inspiration for her. These walls are different, built with purpose and drive, colors vibrant with the skyline of San Francisco visible in nearly all places across the Academy. There are subtle colors, blues, yellows and reds that adorn certified personal of Starfleet, and she feels a sense of purpose and drive to one day wear the color of blue that Medical personnel wear. Pike's office is at the very end of the long hallway, and checking her PADD, she notes that she is five minutes early, hesitates, before she braves knocking on the door.

"Come in."is called, and it's brisk, even and surprisingly, inviting.

Ariel steps into the office, fingers clenching around her PADD, and sits when the man behind the desk prompts her too. She is surprised he stood at her entrance- a sign of respect she did not expect from an Officer, and Captain nonetheless of Starfleet, to give to a Cadet entering his office. But she files that away, appreciates and salutes in a way she hopes is halfway passable just before she sits.

The man behind the chair is of quiet command, she decides, placing her PADD in her lap and tightly crossing her legs at her ankles to stave off the urge to tap her feet. He is older, but still, has the physique of a much younger man that most with silver in their hair wouldn't bother with, but then again, he is a Captain, and that is at least a physical caliber of men completely above the men his age that she is used too.

"Cadet Lager, I wish to express my appreciation for deciding to join StarFleet."he starts, and here, he smiles, excluding a sort of casual warmth.

"Appreciation is mine, Captain, I was afraid I would not be able to join."

The fear had nearly choked her, standing there in her mermaid pajamas at the Riverside Starfleet port. She had thought she would be forced to go home with crushed dreams and her tail between her legs. Because she wouldn't have followed through if someone had caught her, if she was forced to wait for the next semester for late admission, she doubted that she would ever join Starfleet if she hadn't made it in time. She was too predictable a creature not to be unconvinced by her parents if she hadn't made it in time, she would have been trapped. Now, it's set in stone, and over lunch, she had sent a formal letter of resignation to the University she was supposed to be joining the following week.

"What do you mean?"here, his voice is shrewd.

The beginnings of the first song she had learned on her violin started faintly with her booted toes tapping at the chair leg, and she recrosses her ankles tightly. She doesn't try to lie, never saw the point to, something Dara had been trying to train her out of. She was getting better at it, but it didn't mean she did it often.

"I was supposed to start Yale in a week, sir."

The Captain gives her a measuring glance.

"Yet somehow you're in my office, Cadet."

"I made a leap of faith."she replies, and she looks past Captain Pike to the distant outline of San Francisco in the distance.

She is not spiritual, not exactly. But she does believe that things happen for a reason, meeting Dara, accidently being signed up to volunteer in the ER instead of the Head of Finance's office, finding that Xenobiology book. Her impulse to 'run away' was another one.

His gaze is intense, she notes, eyes narrowed and he smiles. Warm, appreciating.

"You're a rebel." he states.

It's so ridiculous that she actually laughs, a surprised little giggle that would have made both her parents look at her in embarrassment for doing such a thing in front of their colleagues(the reason why she had learned to suppress them in the first place). The Captain simply laughs with her, warm and fuller than her little spark of sound.

"You are. Yale is a lofty expectation to walk away from. What made you do it?"

His question is sincere and directed at her. She blinks at the heat in her eyes, clenches her fingers together to ease the haze now over her eyes. She blames it on the lack of sleep and the somewhat sterile air.

"Fear is a strange thing, Captain Pike,"she had not expected this to come up with anyone, she had not expected the right questions said to her directly at all, and it is appreciated as well as daunting to be able to answer them, "But the thought of complete mental stagnation and following expectations made me take a different course than the one expected of me."

He's smiling again, he doesn't know the entire story, but something tells Ariel that he doesn't need to.

"Well, then, Cadet, let's make sure that mental stagnation is the _last_ thing you will ever encounter in Starfleet."

Ariel's heart flutters, and she nods in determination. They speak about what _she_ wants, and how fast she wants to get there. Of the courses she had already taken at university level thanks to her parents prompting, as well as the one's she had taken of her own free will and after months of saving her credit allowance. Her general load of coursework(it will not be easy, it will not be simple, and that is _beautiful_ ), of her payments for her lodging, of her teachers and general expectations of conduct. He mentions the potential of jobs around the Academy to help pay some those expensive off(Dara gave her enough to pay for this semester and Ariel refused to beg her parents because this will be done by her _own_ hand).

By the end of the nearly two-hour session, Ariel has her PADD full of a list of her eight classes, of the needed supplies for each one, a slight spring in her usual brisk pace, and with a lighter heart.

She almost wants to sing, but considering her tendency to sound like a bullfrog at best, she refrains and contents herself with wiggling with sheer excitement. Of course, for the second time that day, an arm swings around her waist.

"Hello, Kiddo."

Ariel stops, too good a mood and to knowing of what a person like Kirk could potentially be like to be really annoyed, so she simply nods:

"James."

His smile is large, and his wiggling brows seem to be a staple of his facial tics.

"Call me Jim, Kiddo."

"Not quite yet, Cadet."she says, and this time, she wiggles out of Kirk's arm.

He let's her go without a fight.

"We'll get there, Lager. We'll get there."

She feels her lips twitch.

"Perhaps soon."she is an honest creature by nature.

He smiles, and while it isn't completely innocent, there is a sense of trueness and softness that is different in this smile than all the ones before. Ariel can see that there's more to this man than cockiness, just like she saw in Dara all those years ago when she was sitting on her window ledge and telling her bluntly that she sucked at the violin(she is not naturally talented at it no, doesn't have that ease that Dara has in singing, but she's gotten better over the years). James T. Kirk is not all he seems, and Ariel wouldn't mind seeing what else hides behind those wiggling brows and clinging hands.

"Where are you headed off to?"

"My dorm, I'm exhausted."she replies.

Her new bed is calling her name, though she would not say no to another shower, perhaps relax her muscles.

"Tell your roommate I say hi,"here, he smirks, "What is her name, by the way?"

The story of why Uhura refuses to tell him his name was given over lunch, and she is amused because she doubts he knows why Uhura was really angry about that day. It wasn't the blunt flirting, she could have pushed that off, and while the bar fighting wasn't really too good of a thing, it is the fact of what he tried to do that upsets the young African woman.

"I'm not saying."she pauses, before she smirks for a fraction of a second, "Did you really try to buy a drink for an eighteen-year-old?"

The older man blinks have the dignity to flush and then blinks again.

"She looks older."he mentions and gives a startled laugh.

Uhura does not _look_ older to Ariel- Perhaps it was the easy, confident way she held herself, the mature way she spoke that made her seem that way. But in the end, she was still eighteen… Under the legal age to drink, and that was why she had dismissed him when he had offered to buy her a shot. His persistence, though annoying, hadn't been wanted, and then the whole bar fight had cemented to Nyota that, and quote, 'James Kirk is a destructive nuisance that flirts with anything in a skirt.'

"She was just trying to be helpful: some of the people on the shuttle had longer flights than she did and she was more than happy to help them relax from being in a tiny box with the same people for hours at a time."she says, and he smirks.

"She seems the type. Thanks for telling me Lager, I got to go, got a meeting at 1530 with my Academic Counselor."

She raises a brow.

"Pike?"

He grins.

"Pike."

"Good luck, James."she pauses, and then places a hand on his arm, "He's a good man, and he won't steer you wrong."

"He's a challenging son of Bitch that sees the good in people. But thanks, Kiddo." the ruffled to her hair is not appreciate, even if the warmth in his tone is.

 **000000**

Nyota is not in the dorm when Ariel returns, neither is she when she comes out of her short shower. She is mildly disappointed when she reads the message sent on her PADD saying that she is running late in her meeting with Captain Walker, but understands that even her's ran late, and Nyota has a similar mindset to be obsessive in every detail for this academic semester. Dressed in flannel pajamas, ready to curl up in her bed, but Ariel decides to not get used to sleeping so early in preparation for the start of classes next week. She is sitting at the desk working on a rough proposal for chores after she puts away all of her clothes in the closet, set up her things as Uhura did to make the room look lived in(it is already more her's than her bedroom at home) when there is a light knock. Blinking, Ariel heads to the door and opens it. She does not expect the person on the other door but is happy nonetheless.

"So Dajazz* says you ran away to Starfleet."mentions Darian Jack Lee, and he is smirking in his Officer's uniform, breath rough as if he ran all the way from the teacher apartments of the Academy. Knowing his impulsive nature shared with his sister, she knows he probably did.

She leans against her door, head and all, crossing her arms casually. Several Cadets are staring, there is a male officer in the female dorm after all, but most just go on their way. She adores adulthood. At home, Darian coming to her front door would have caused half the neighborhood to gossip.

"Why, DJ, I ran away to Starfleet."she mentions, and she can't help the smile that appears on her face.

His own smile is big, grand and bright.

"You finally did something for yourself, Fish Girl." he reaches in and pulls her tightly against his body, gives her a hug that is crushing, which she returns, "Let me buy you dinner!"

"Let me get dressed."

He nods, grinning still, and she shuts the door. She dresses quickly(casual and comfortable, glad to give her neck some breathing room after that formal uniform), and sends Uhura the proposal for the chores, a note saying a relative wanted to take her out for dinner and that she is welcome to join them if she's hungry when she's out of the meeting. DJ is all but bouncing outside when he takes her arm and the entire way to a nearby restaurant he is blabbing away. He knows her taste well enough, and she sends directions to the restaurant, to Uhura in case she wanted to catch up.

Once they are seated and ordered their food, the twenty-one-year-old is still beaming and surprises her by setting up his PADD in a video conference. Dara's smirking face appears and Ariel feels a flash of warmth. And surprise because if she wasn't mistaken, behind Dara is not her bedroom but what looks like the Great Wall of China, and it looks like she re-dyed her hair into a red, nearly the same shade of Ariel's new uniform.

"Fish Girl you cheeky bitch!"she calls, and the sunlight is bright behind her.

Ariel blinks.

"Why are you in China?"

"Not even a hello? Fine, you aren't in New York, no point of staying. Besides, your parents will think you're with me. This will give you time to settle in."

The gesture is appreciated, if useless.

"I left a note."

Dara snorts:

"And you think I didn't know you would? I tore them up. Burned them and danced in the ashes." Despite the ludicrousness of what she just said, Ariel knew that Dara is an honest creature(she just happens to know how to lie well), one of the few things they had in common, "You have no way to be tracked down and dragged away. You're staying where you are Fish Girl, no going back even if I have to make DJ tie you up at the Academy."

This is the first time Dara has ever been passionate or adamant about making Ariel do anything, and Ariel feels a lump in her throat. She knew that meant that Dara approved of what she had done, and that meant the world to her. She doubts many people in her life would think the same of her actions.

"No need for that. I sent in the letter of resignation to Yale."

The honest shook on both her's and DJ's faces are hilarious.

"No 'pussing out', Princess."she says softly, and Dara smirks.

"My baby is doing so well."she mock sniffs, "Going off to be her own person."

"It's been a learning curve."she replies.

DJ laughs, squeezing her hands.

"So, why did you decide to do this? "

"Because I _wanted_ too."she stares at her dearest friends, those who had supported her and made her open her horizons. The two people in this world that had bothered to ask her for the first time, and it was because of their probing that she even dared try to do anything other than what her parents told her, "It's something that's mine, my decision, my life, and not a repeat of what my parents lived through."

"Oh hell, you are going to make your parents _cry_."cries out Dara, and she looks all too gleeful.

Ariel loves her parents, understands them completely for wanting what they wanted for her. But she can not say that there was no resentment for never been given options in eighteen years of life. The smile she gives is thin, and perhaps a little cruel. It is not made with real malicious, but neither had her parents' choices when they decided Ariel's whole life for her.

"Perhaps. But it would be no different than when they made me cry."

They talked until their food comes, and Dara gives them all a cheeky wave and a mention that 'she had a hot date with some smoking hot twins I met last night'. DJ and Ariel catch up, and it's twenty minutes later that Uhura arrives, explains that she knew they had eaten by now and wanted to catch at least dessert. Ariel appreciates the effort on her roommates behalf, introduces her with DJ(who bows out because he has to go over his final class list), and they spend the rest of the rest of the evening going over their chores and general tidbits of what life living with the other is going to be like over their favorite desserts, tiramisu for Ariel and chocolate ice-cream for Nyota. They share all three of their general classes, but that does not surprise them. The promise of helping the other is again said, and they look forward to their classes. They go home roughly at 1800, eager to get their sleep schedule ready for the next week, and they are comfortable as Ariel's pick of music(a classical score that she had fit together) to lull them to sleep.

When Ariel starts her classes the next week, by the end of it, she feels as if she ran a marathon. All eight of her courses were so intense, all very detailed, and would be the death of her. She hits her bed with an oomph, and next to her, Nyota is no look at each other, exhausted, and all they want to do was sleep. Even the week they had been given before the classes had not been enough to ease into their surroundings or prepare for what hit them on Monday.

They're also discovering little things that annoy the other: Nyota hates the fact that Ariel finds Kirk amusing, hates the fact that she tends to stay up half the night and still wake up at 0500 for their first class without a problem, and she stayed bluntly that she dislikes the smell of her perfume. Ariel hates the fact that her roommate tends to leave papers scattered across their small dorm apartment when she is particularly bright idea for class and needs the room to spread it all out, that she has a very spicy taste when she cooks(she likes it well enough but she rather not eat something with _fire_ as the main ingredient), and finds the fact that she has to spend at least an hour showering annoying(her bladder is not that strong in the morning).

But, that is all minor things, compromises are being met for every little thing that rubs them the wrong way, and so far, Ariel can say that she enjoys having a roommate. Dara isn't here, and DJ is Commander Lee, and thus not appropriate for her to be around during regular hours. Nyota Uhura is there, and she is kind, she is intelligent and Ariel knows in time she will find a great friend in her fellow Cadet.

She can see it now, as the other exhausted girl grins at her, laughs, and tugs at her satchel, stretching. Ariel follows her.

"Let's get to it Lager."she says, promptly, and she wiggles her PADD before she starts looking at her assignments.

"Let's get to it."she echoes.

They bury themselves into their respective homework, the concept of the 'weekend' meaningless to both of them.

* * *

 **AU: I do not own Star Trek, it is own by its studio, creators, and broadcasting company.**

 **This is me, just making sandcastles, lopsided and a little funky looking, in its sandbox because it's fun.**

 **I will hardly ever update this often. Something about this story just kinda grabbed me by my muse and is chanting "Ariel, Ariel, come on, keep her story going! PHASERS! SPOCK! ENTERPRISE!" And so you have this chapter. I even wrote a little bit of the next one and I am cringing because I really need to focus on my other stories too. But that is neither here or there I suppose, and will only annoy the readers that have me on author alerts and see that no, their story(or stories) are not updated.**

 **This is a slow burn story I'm afraid. Ariel doesn't even meet Spock formally until further down the line, though there will be mention of him and even a cameo interaction in the next chapter. After all, sometimes even if someone will become important to you in a new environment it doesn't mean they will be very apparent or that you will cross paths with them immediately.**

 **I'd also like to stress right now that Uhura will have her place. I adored the addition of her and Spock's romance in the reboot, but this is a story I wished to explore a character and universe that is very dear to me. As I planned this out, I felt Ariel Lager would do well with Spock romantically(good, not better). The fact that Ariel and Spock are the 'end-goal' does not mean that Uhura will become the villain. I detest fics that shaft the original love interest and vilifies them because their special little snowflake doesn't get their love because of their 'evil' girlfriend, ex, or wife, whatever. Most characters given this role are genuinely good characters and are only done this in an offensive maneuver for someone's ship(which isn't the problem, but rather the handling and vile defense some people will give for the sake of their own ship in contrast to another*starts humming why can't we be friends?*) and that is simply horrible for me. Uhura and Ariel are friends, roommates, and while down the line Spock will become a point of tension, it will not mean that it will destroy their friendship or cause one or the other to have a 180 personality change. It also doesn't mean that it will not damage their friendship, though, and will not complicate it because life rarely is so black and white.**

 **Ariel's suppression of her emotions, by the way, is not healthy. The entire point of her having it in the first place, however, is to emphasize her isolated childhood and the mindset of her parents in regard to her own choices throughout her life. She will never be completely open or smile hugely at everything, but she will learn to express herself constructively and in a way that is comfortable for her. It is something that will cause Spock, yes, to have an interest in her, but it will later become a point that will be addressed in both of them and help them both grow together as people.**

 **1*: Military time. I expect that Starfleet uses it. For those who don't know it, it's rather simple: it runs on a 24 hour period, each subsequent hour is added from 1 in the morning 'till 12(So 0100 is 1 o'clock am, 0200 is 2 o'clock am, etc.) then you just keep adding from 1200 until you reach 2400( 1300 is 1o'clock pm, 1500 is 3o'clock pm, etc.)**

 **2*: Dajazz is just DJ's nickname for Dara. Oh, on an off note, both Darian's & Dara's name mean 'Wealthy' in Persian, and their middle names are from both their respected parts. They are of Chinese and Persian descent.**

 **~Moon Witch '96**


	3. The Trouble with Hypos

**The Trouble with Hypos**

" _You've got your mother in a whirl..."Rebel, Rebel,_ David Bowie, 1974

It isn't until she is a month into her Starfleet classes that the rest of the consequences of her actions caught up to Ariel.

She was walking from her accelerated Chemistry class and towards her Xenobiology one, eager because today they were starting on a new species. She is not in a rush as she has twenty minutes between these classes, and rather pleased at the proposition she and her partner(Doctor McCoy is a brilliant Chemist, and while they are both in the most advanced class, he still makes her feel wonderfully stupid) in the former class had come up with for the project that isn't due for an another three weeks. It was sure to get them a pleasant grade, and she hoped that Nyota would be able to help her with the homework left from their Spacial-Physic class (she can understand most of it, but when it comes to the numbers, she is not as excellent as she wanted to be in mathematics, and the young African woman was fairly brilliant at them).

After Xenobiology class she has her last class of the day, which is Technological Care and Procedures(or TCP) and knows that today they would be reviewing hypos, a staple of any Medical professional. Her schedule is split in half over the course of the week: her courses are on an alternating time-slot, three classes for one day(four hours each with an average of at least twenty minutes between each one), three different ones the next, and on Friday she takes her final two classes. She is busy and pleased to no end, and surprisingly, she has even made a few tentative friends in the five weeks she has been at Starfleet in general(she does not speak to Dara or DJ often, they have their own lives to live out and are perfectly content to let her social circle grow). A pleasant surprise considering how difficult it is for her to converse with her peers(give her a Professor any day, she can handle them just fine).

She and Nyota are still in the midst of getting to know each other, but their growing pains have been minimal. Their personalities are a good match and are both willing to state grievances and errors to the other without hesitation. They have settled into a pleasant routine and often get together after class to work on their assignments(they can manage it for most classes, with the exception of two). They do, however, make a point to always share dinner together, usually some form of take-out or something quick from the replicator. They talk over the cartons or somewhat off food(replicators never can get flavors quite right) and finish the day by studying or working on assignments. On occasion, they did go out, mostly for coffee on the weekends, and so far, two musical performances. Their shared love of music had caused an impromptu jazz session more than once in their dorm, with her violin and Nyota's wonderful scatting abilities, and beautiful voice. Ariel was sure that she had found a dear friend in her fellow Cadet, and she thinks that Uhura has made the same conclusion.

She and Kirk get along very well, which confuses most people(a fact that seems to delight Kirk to no end), and she allows his mild flirtations because it seems to come naturally and automatically. He very much reminds her of Dara and both fears and looks forward to the day the two meet(it will be an explosion or an implosion, she is not sure which). The fact that he has stopped asking her out or for casual sex after a single conversation of wanting to focus on her studies was enlightening and introspective to the type of man James Kirk was:

"You sure there kiddo?" for once his smirk is gone, his wiggling brows are still, "I mean, you and me, we could set our worlds on fire."

It is a dorky line both of them know it. But Kirk was surprisingly cheesy at moments when he wasn't exuding cockiness and annoying charm. He is walking her back to her dorm after studying for a test they have on Monday in History. It was two weeks after they had met, and Ariel has never been more painfully aware that the farthest she has ever gotten with the opposite sex is making out at a party that Dara had been throwing at her house. The thought of a causal relationship with James Kirk(the only kind he seems interested in) is not an unpleasant one, nor unwelcome, but at the same time, Ariel can see that she didn't join Starfleet for that. She joined to explore and test herself, and it just seems too raw or new to try sharing herself with a person even when she doesn't quite understand what 'herself' entitles. She told him so, but in less intimate words.

James had just nodded, slung a casual arm around her shoulders:

"Alright, but I still want to take you out dancing sometimes. All work and no play make Ariel a dull girl."

"Whatever you say, _Jim._ "she stressed, and the peck on her lips she had received after that had been quick, and mostly platonic.

She also has come to know Doctor McCoy very well in her time at the Academy: they share five classes of eight classes, often met up to discuss her lower classes in Medical, and message each article or points of medical discussion. McCoy has been wonderful for her intellectually, and constantly challenges her and quizzes her to the point where she gets confused. The older man is a brilliant Doctor, and brilliant scientist. The fact that he is only brushing up on his medical skills for the first year and will move on to classes meant to train officers is humbling, and she is gratified that the man seemed to have taken a liking to her and her efforts to just become a Doctor period. He is a little rough, and she doesn't blame him for it(she doesn't know what she would ever do if someone destroyed her emotionally as his ex-wife had), but overall a good man underneath all that gruffness.

She, Kirk and McCoy share lunch together because their schedules allow for it every day, and on occasion, though grudgingly, Nyota joins them on Tuesdays and Thursdays because that is when her schedule allows it. She seems to like McCoy, but still loaths Kirk. Which, suits the Iowan just fine, because, and quote 'she's fun to mess with'. Ariel is a tentative buffer between the two, and Doctor McCoy sorts them out when they get particularly snarky to one another.

She likes this about the cantankerous man and finds a kinship in the fact that he has difficulty in saying no to people. They've had many talks about how that is bad for them, and how people can walk all over them. The fact that Jim is such a forceful person has come up many times, but both she and Doctor McCoy have agreed that despite how cavalier the man seems, that Kirk is a good man and a little leeway is given because he doesn't often try to drag them into his schemes. She point-blank refuses to go out dancing with him no matter how many times he asks, and McCoy often tells her to run away as fast as she can whenever he does(the southern man complains each time that he goes with the younger man how much it hurts his liver and that he isn't as young as he used to be).

It has been a good month, actually spent in her classes, overall a wonderful experience in Starfleet Academy. And while she has been wary and anxious(normal, she thinks, for anyone who makes such a drastic decision that affect their entire life), she has not come to regret her impulsive decision even after five weeks of agonizing over it.

She freezes when she hears her name:

" _Ariel Lager_!"in a scream that she is pretty sure that even Dara, who was currently backpacking through Nepal, could hear it.

She cannot help the flinch or the cringed as the familiar voice echoes in her ears. It brings back memories of sharp reprime for falling flat on several notes in her very first recital(she was only seven and her fingers ached and she had had so much _fun_ , but it doesn't seem to matter). For failing to get a perfect in her last Mathematics test(numbers don't make as much sense as most sciences and history, it is all a jumbled mess that bundles together in an unconnected web), and for snorting when her parents' colleague he had been telling a personal anecdote(it had been his goal to make her laugh, he had winked when she had made the quiet noise).

She blinks, hands clenching around her PADD as she turned toward her mother and father.

They hadn't changed, in the near five weeks since she's seen them. They are still a sharply dressed couple that looks every inch the Professors they are. Her mother is still petite as her, had the same blue eyes and has flowing black hair that Ariel had envied as a child. Somehow, she had thought that the entire world would have shifted with her own personal perspective, and she is somewhat stunned at the fact that is not the case.

Her mother's expression is pinched, and her father, standing right next to her in a neat suit, same badge of a visitor pinned to his chest, simply looks on with a cool, cool mask of stillness: the same one her mother had forced her to adopt, because she was the expressive one and sometimes that got her mother in trouble in the cool world of Academia, it was for _her_ own good, for her future. She inherited both of their pale skin, and her hair is her father's hair, even if his ruddy locks are darker than her own blonder shade.

"Mother, Father."her voice does not tremble because she makes sure it doesn't. They were never 'mommy' or 'daddy', sometimes, they were even Doctor Lagers when they were teaching her.

Her mother's face twitches and she is glaring at Ariel in a way that she has never had before, heated and confused like when she is stuck on a particularly difficult article of History that throws off her perspective. Part of Ariel relishes in that face because it was better than the pinched disapproval or the cold regard of disappointment. Her father actually regarded her now, his expression too adopting the look he had when he was stumped with a particularly hard aspect of Ancient Literature.

"Do you have any idea what you put _us_ through!"snaps her mother, and again, it is a personal regard, as if she has personally wounded her.

Ariel flexes her grip around her PADD.

"I left you a note telling you where I was going to pursue my career. I believe Dara misplaced it."

Dark, green eyes narrow.

"So it was that Lee girl that forced you to come here." her father's voice is faint, relieved, and his green eyes relax. But is brutal because in a sense it was as if he expected her to be able to lead around all her life.

It's painfully true, she is not a leader, she does not believe she will ever be an authority, but the fact that they think her mindlessly obedient stings. But she supposes, that has only changed recently, five weeks ago, and they had not seen her grow so much in such a short time. Their faces loose the intensity and attention she had often sought as a child- they are back to their usual reluctance and impatience at attending their only child.

She blinks, inhales slowly from her nose. She knew this was coming, but it doesn't mean that she relishes the act of it occurring.

"That is untrue. Dara simply took me to the airport when I asked her too."here, her mother scowls and Ariel's voice sharpens, "I came here of my own will."

"Then it was Darian, filled your head with the glory of serving the Federation. Do you have any idea how embarrassing it was to hear from Charles at Yale that you weren't in the freshman class when I asked after you?"

Embarrassment, filled her head. That was the main point her mother wanted to stress. Not the fact that Ariel could have fallen off the face of the Earth for five weeks. She could think that it was because her parents' found out that she was here at Starfleet and relatively safe, but she doesn't know and is painfully aware at how callous her mother sounds. _She is easily lead, she needs an outside influence to make decisions._ She can not deny that DJ and Dara didn't influence her to expand her horizons, but she _can_ deny that they made choices for her.

They always left that to her, even when they thought it was better for her to make a different one.

"Commander Lee has no such influence over my decision in joining the Academy."her voice lapses into a strict, cool tone and formality that she has been trying to move away from, and she painfully squeezes her thighs together to make her toes stop tapping.

Her knuckles strain as she clutches her PADD. Her father shakes his head.

"Enough. We can discuss the error of your actions once we are at Yale." her father checks his watch, "We have a shuttle flight in two hours. That is sufficient for you to pack your clothing and start the process of untangling yourself from the Federation."

Ariel stares and both her parents stare impatiently and expectantly back. Her heart is roaring in your ears.

"I have sent my letter of resignation to the University of Yale."her voice is firm, distinct.

Her mother waves an impatient hand.

"Yes, yes, and Charles has already agreed to pull some strings. Honestly, Ariel. "Indignation, as if she is ungrateful.

She supposes she is.

Ariel blinks again looks down at her PADD. She has ten minutes. The distance can be covered in five minutes, but she likes taking leisurely walks throughout the beautiful campus.

"If you will excuse me, I have class."she says, softly, and a small part of her enjoys the shocked, outraged looks her parents adopt.

Most of her is just tired and wanting to put this behind her. She turns, and is only stopped from going on her way because her mother grabs her arm, and pulls her back. Her PADD crashes to the ground, and the papers for her next class scatter. Ariel blinks and starts to pick them up without turning to her mother. Her upper arm is gripped strongly, she is wrenched to her feet, turned around. Her father isn't a strong man per say, he is lanky, a trait he had passed onto her. But he is stronger than she thought, grip tight on her upper arm.

"Ariel, stop this foolishness and lead us to your dorm. Your unthoughtfulness has already cost you a month worth of study time, an unnecessary shuttle flight for your mother and I, as well as undue embarrassment for us."He steps back, straightens his jacket.

"I am not leaving, my place is in Starfleet."she bends down, picks up what remains of her papers and is relieved when her PADD appears unharmed.

She stands, breathes, and looks her father straight in the eye.

"You make too many assumptions. I resigned from Yale because it will do nothing to fulfill my own personal ambitions. Starfleet is ideal for my purposes, it will accelerate my education and give me many prospects when it comes to occupations in the field I have chosen. " her voice is just as his always, unmoved, hardly changing in inflection, analytical and she almost relishes throwing back to the person that had demanded it from her, "I have no inclination of leaving it because my actions have upset you."

"Upset us? It infuriates us! You having a tantrum and leaving with no word, joining Starfleet of all things and having the gall to tell us that you will not see the error of what you've done?"starts her mother, and she is moving forward, fists clenched.

"I have made no error."she paused and looks straight into her mother's demanding blue eyes.

" _Ariel._ "her mother says her name sharply, before, it had been enough to make her falter, make her bow down and accept whatever her parents had decided for her.

But she has made a choice, and she stands by it in a way that she has never have before.

"If you'll excuse me, I do not wish to be late."

The slap is sudden and not what Ariel had expected. Especially considering that it came not from her mother, but her father. It is a good slap, a hearty thing that actually sends Ariel sprawling to the ground. She is blinking, staring up at her usually calm father. His body is tense, his pale face flushed a deep, angry red. He is never looked so affected to Ariel, and the fact that he is looming with is arm raised as if to hit her again makes her flinch back.

"That is quite enough."the voice that speaks is calm, collected, and hardly changes in inflection.

Someone steps out of the crowd(she hadn't even noticed them gathering, so intent on her parents), the Vulcan- Commander Spock, to be specific-hands clasped behind his back comes forward. His stride is purposeful, and he stops to stand between her and her parents. He regards her. Ariel blinked again and took a deep breath. She stood, hand already carrying her mess of papers and her PADD with a quick scramble of her arm. She saluted because that was what she was supposed to do when someone of a higher rank approached her during Academy hours. The Vulcan paused at her salute, and nodded minutely, before he turned to stare at her parents, particularly her father.

"Cadet, do you wish to press charges of assault?"

The question stunned her, it hadn't crossed her mind. Her mother screeched with rage, while her father's face carried blank shock as if he was unsure if he had really slapped his daughter(he had never raised a hand before, not even once). His hand drops, and he takes a step back, flexing the appendage.

Her cheek ached.

"No, sir."his raised eyebrow, so slight a move, but it spoke volumes on his serene face, "I would rather have them removed from campus so I may go to my class. I would prefer not to be late."

Spock stared at the Cadet, fair hair tumbled out of the confines of her bun, pale cheek red with the imprint of the elder man's hand(presumably her father). Her face did not move, hardly twitched, but her fingers were trembling, agitation and distress clear to him, even with her even voice. There had been a slight hesitation, a slight tremble in her voice that most would have missed. He does not because he has long weeded out such actions in his own face, voice, knows even when the slightest flaw appears in a perfect, logical calm. He commended her for keeping her emotions in check, for the most part, surprised that a human could be so calm in such an altercation that is bound to be so emotionally packed.

He would not have noticed the altercation if not for the yells of the two older guests, and the gathering crowd. He interfered because of the disturbance of traffic to his usual route of his late afternoon walk and found himself catching just as the young woman had been forced to her feet, explained her position, and been subsequently slapped. Spock did not understand why she had been accosted physically, he thought her explanation, if baring details, had been reasonable. He had expected or really thought that the logical course for her parents were to leave their daughter and allow her to go to her class.

Humans, even after being with his mother all his life, baffled him.

"Cadet, I have already alerted security."he stated, "Dismissed."

The girl blinks, nods sharply, and gives her parents a long look. Their faces are emotional and upset, angry he would say, but he knows not why. The Cadet herself simply blinks again, eyes alive in a way that her still face wasn't, shakes her head slightly, and gives him a quick, jerky salute(following protocol, he notes, once again). She turns on her heels and walks briskly away. Her parents attempt to go after her, but the rest of the crowd interferes, crowding around even as he stepped between them.

"SHE CAN'T STAY HERE! ARIEL! ARIEL!"screamed the older woman that held some of her genetic traits.

"If your daughter has applied without your consent then she is of age. You have no say whether or not she will continue her pursuit of a career in Starfleet." he raises a brow, "If you do not want to be charged with disruption of the peace, I believe your best course of action would be to allow yourself to be escorted off of Federation property."

The man turns to him, clenching his fists. Like his daughter, he tries to hold a mask of calm, unlike his daughter, the man fails.

"She is no daughter of mine."his voice is dark and full of a furry that Spock condemns, and does not understand.

He ignores it, nods pointedly to the older couple once security arrives, makes his statement, and walks on. His mind is already focused on the next logical course of action concerning his next class. The Cadet(Ariel, he recalls faintly) does not appear in his mind again until the end of the day when his mother is conferencing him(an occurrence they can rarely arrange due to distance, and their respective schedule). She had missed 'him' despite the fact that they keep a regular correspondence through his PADD. She asked him of his day(the same as his days the year before, full of students both promising and very well likely to fail before the semester was out). Then, she asked if anything extremely eventful or specific had happened throughout his day.

"A Cadet was assaulted by her parents today."

His mother has long learned to temper her emotions, living on Vulcan for two and a half decades since her marriage would leave no other course. But she has never hidden anything from him even when he had stopped being affectionate or emotive in a human way. Now, she furrows her brows, upset and worry on her face.

"Was she injured?"

"She received an open-handed blow to her face, minimal redness. Perhaps bruising on her upper arm from being pulled. All minor injuries." he pauses, thinks of the apparent reason why, "It appears that her parents did not approve of her decision of joining Starfleet."

His mother hums, a pleasant noise that he has long associated with her.

"And you do not understand why." she knows him beyond anyone, even himself, which defies logic but he has long come to the conclusion that his mother is one of the few things in the universe that are allowed to do so.

"Starfleet is one of the most difficult and sought after careers on Earth, akin to the Vulcan Academy of Science. Her parents should have expressed pride in seeing her daughter accepted."

His mother stares at him, slim, tanned hand coming to rest underneath her chin. She looks thoughtful, weighing in her thoughts carefully. That too was brought on from her time on Vulcan, but somehow she always expressed herself in such an emotive way from the simplest action. It had brought her scorn, as illogical as it was, but it had also made her a singular creature in his eyes as a child.

"That is not always the case, Spock. Some parents place expectations upon their children that are not realistic or wanted by the child. This can cause anger, resentment when those expectations are removed, even when they are done for something that can be more prestigious."

"Illogical."he states.

"Yes. But parents often are when it comes to what they think is best for their children. Sometimes that can stretch a child too far, or even constrain a child from reaching their potential."her words are soft, and he can see that she understands that faulty logic even if she does not condone it.

"I do not understand."

"Children rarely do, my son."she smiles, and it is one of the few things that she has always refused to temper. Because of this, it consumes her entire face, causing pupillary reactions, narrowing the eye to reflect more light in an appearance of a 'sparkle'.

He pauses, raises a brow.

"Please,"he hardly uses the word with anyone but her, it is illogical to plead when you can reason, but his mother appreciated the word even if he did not understand it, "Explain."

"This is not something I can explain, Spock. Even if I could, I doubt anyone but a parent could understand it."

He believes everything has an explanation. But sometimes, much to his frustration, one can not be found with the insufficient data present. So he nods, decides that this topic of conversation is finished, and moves on.

 **000000000**

"You've been off since you came into TPC, Ariel."McCoy's voice is as it always is, gruff, and had the faintest hint of a drawl that caught the attention of any attracted to the male sex.

Now, Ariel does not appreciate the words, even if it is said in his honeyed tone. She looks up from her hypo, smacks the side of it inelegantly in a faint effort to help the activation process of the gear work inside. The small machine rattles and she wonders with frustration if she picked up a broken one. At the end of class, they had been issued a standard practice kit(paid for it as well) and were expected to carry it for the remainder of their time as Medical trainees until they receive their official one upon graduation.

"Don't break the damn thing."snaps McCoy, and he is fiddling with his own.

"It's already broken."she snapped right back, a small frown coming to her lips. She forces it away and presses her lips into a firm, straight line instead.

"You got to find its habits. Each piece of tech has its own way of handling, ignore the shit the book tells you."

She simply huffs, adjusting the hypo once again. McCoy stares at her, and the twenty-eight-year-old does not look happy.

"Ariel?"he prompts, and it's a quiet question.

"How much attention do you give to the Academy rumor mill?"

The man shrugs, rubbing the back of his neck. They are sitting in a quiet study room, kits sprawled across the table and PADDS open to their reading assignment of TPC. McCoy and her have already discussed their lab project in greater detail, and Ariel has written the proposition(McCoy is a far more experienced Doctor, and had hidden depths of an intellectual mad scientist in experiments, but he couldn't write to save his southern-backside). They were reviewing the reading and going over the practical instructions they had been given today.

"Um, some guy named Ulo, or Sulu something was caught on the roof trying to grow some plant or an another, some people are still debating if it was just an unauthorized experiment or drugs" he pauses, scratched absently at the seemingly permanent stubble on his face,"And this female Cadet was confronted for running away by her parents, they hurt her pretty badly, maybe beat her in the courtyard? Oh, and apparently our resident Vulcan knocked them out cold to get them off the Cadet."

She sighs.

"They never beat me, my father just slapped me. And Commander Spoke only called security on them."

McCoy stares, mouth hanging open.

"Shit, kid."

She winces at his swear words, even as his tan skin darkens. Her tries to avoid swearing around her, rather sweet actually, but apparently due to his mother teaching him good manners in front of a lady. Ariel does not think she is a lady, per say, but appreciates the sentiment nonetheless. Even if she had heard worse from Dara.

"What happened?"

She sighs.

"I ran away, Doctor McCoy. It caught up to me."

He snorts.

"Descriptive, kid. You do know you can call me Leonard."

She manages to smile, eyes still on her hypo.

"Alright, Leonard."

"Not going into details, are you?"he says bluntly, and his gaze turns to the assigned reading. He humps, scrolls down on his PADD.

"No, I am not." she shakes the hypo vial(a simple supplement of vitamins), and inserts it, "So, did I do this right?"

"Did you align the vial?"

"Yes."

"Calibrated for ethnic skin thickness, muscle to fat ratio?"

"Calibrated."

Leonard hummed.

"Hit me, kid."

She reaches over and pressed the cylinder into Doctor McCoy's neck. He rubs it for a brief second. He shakes his head, picks up his own hypo and gives an expert shake to the vial, aligns it, and calibrates it with a faint and practiced twitch of his hands. He hits her in the neck, and she flinches at the sound of the hypo going off so close to her ear.

"What did I do wrong?"

"Textbook. You have to get comfortable with it."

She hums, blinks.

"I see."

McCoy purses his lips and pats her arm for a brief, awkward second.

"Practice kid. I've been a practicing Medicine since I was your age… You'll get there."

She nods, and inserts another vial, less awkwardly this time. Leonard hums in approval and goes back to the reading. She does not expect what he says next:

"You'll do good here, Ariel. Family is tough to walk away from." his voice speaks of experience, and she wonders if his fear of flying is only thing that had made him wary of joining Starfleet, if his family just wanted him with them, or to follow a different path, "But you got your future to think about kid, sometimes you have to go on your own path."

She feels her lips twitch.

"Why Leonard McCoy, the philosopher."

He snorts, rolls his eyes.

"Shut up and get back to your hypo."

 **0000000000**

"You're late."says Nyota, and she is moving out of the small kitchen of their dorm apartment. She is carrying an assortment of some sort of pastry looking thing, fresh and steaming.

Ariel shrugs tosses her school bag towards her desk and removes the Medic kit off of her waist and onto her desk.

"Replicator or you?"she asks, smelling the baked good as she took off her boots.

Uhura scoffed, wiggling her painted toes, the woman was fastidious when it came to her nail care, and changed colors every other day. It was a far cry from Ariel's own plain, short cut nails. Today, it was a pale blue that suited her skin tone.

"A samosa* is not to be done by that thing. From scratch, and in celebration of not dropping out,"she said, looking pleased.

Ariel blinked.

"The cutoff for dropouts was today?" the irony was not lost to her that it was today that her parents had come to confront her.

Nyota nodded, placing the hot food in the middle of the table she had bought. They had rearranged their dorm slightly from the original setup of dividing the room in two. They had agreed to cut the large space into sections for specific actions, using furniture as small buffers between zones. The 'dining room' was the closest to the small kitchen and laundry room(really just a small room with replicator, stove, oven dishwasher and washing machine and dryer combination). Their desks were arranged in a small office space by the only window, and their beds were crowded together in a corner, they had agreed for the most part in sharing things as much as possible to keep the use of space as optimal as much as possible. The only things that were still separate were their closets: which they both agreed needed to stay completely separate for sanities' sake.

"Yes, at least half of cadets have already left by this point. Where were you?"

"With Doctor McCoy. TPC homework."

Nyota nodded and offered the samosa, a pyramid-shaped pastry, which Ariel took as she sat down, gathering the plain white plate smeared with some sort of sauce. Carefully, Ariel took a bite. Savory, unexpected flavor hit her tongue: Nyota still tended to cook spicy, and Ariel was now only just getting used to it. She chewed thoughtfully and tried to determine the different ingredients. Swahili cooking was interesting and usually heavy, which is why Nyota tended not to cook it that often(time was also a factor), and Ariel enjoyed it so far.

"Well, any homework left?"

"Spacial physics and I wanted to review some things for basic tomorrow."

Nyota nodded thoughtfully, taking a dainty bite of her samosa.

"Kirk came to ask about you."she said, and she scowled.

Ariel sighed.

"What did he want?"

"Something from the rumor mill was bothering him, not that he should bother paying attention to that idiotic thing. But then again, it is Kirk we're talking about."

Ariel's fists clench, and she took a deliberate bite of samosa.

"Strange."she said.

Nyota looked at her with a scowl.

"He's just trying to get into your pants. Don't fall for that stuff, msichana vidogo*."she said pointedly.

Ariel sighed and narrowed her eyes at the last words.

"Uh, tiny girl? And he's not that bad."she said.

Nyota nodded at her correct translation. The older woman was trying to teach her Swahili- Ariel had no head for languages and stuck to a translator for the most part if she ever encountered someone that didn't know the Federation standard. But Nyota insisted because she, and quote, 'Likes to teach, keep my skills sharp and I like the idea of a secret way to speak with no one the wiser'.

"Yes, he is."

Her tone left no argument, and Ariel left it at that. She took another bite of her samosa.

"Nyota?"

Her heart ached to what had occurred this afternoon- a message between Xenobiology and TPC had come from her parents, and simply stated that she was no longer welcome in their home, to not attempt to make contact, and to expect no financial support from them. She had expected this. Known that her stubborn parents would react this way. But it hurt so damn much to think that her parents were so unwilling to accept the fact that Ariel had to make her own way.

She hadn't sent a response, didn't know how to mend a bridge that she had so gleefully burned herself. But her courage would have faltered if it hadn't been for the people she had met here, the people that had prompted her to come here in the first place… And of one simple act of kindness by the Commander.

"Yes?"

"Thank you for talking to me on the shuttle."she says softly, but it's for much more than that.

The usually serious woman looked at her in genuine surprise, before she smiled. Large and brightened her nearly flawless face.

"You're very welcome, Ariel."

* * *

 **An: I do not own Star Trek. Its characters, concepts, and universe all belong to its studio and broadcasting company.**

This is me just playing in its sandbox, making misshapen sandcastles for our (hopefully) mutual amusement.

 **I can't stop writing for this. Seriously, this was supposed to be a shortish chapter and then I got to writing Spock's part and can you tell that he's my favorite character? He was supposed to be in and out, and then I kept going, and then I made Amanda came in. Well, at least it serves for development later on. I do regret putting him later in the fic now, though because he was so much fun to write.**

 **Ah, well, I'll content myself with McCoy, Kirk, and Uhura.**

 **1* A samosa, or samoosa is basically like the equivalent of a tamale, just with bread(filled with chicken or beef, a variety of vegetables and sometimes served with sauce). It's very common food and has a variety of differences depending on the region(found in Europe, Africa, the subcontinent of India, and other parts of Asia). The variation that Nyota made is found in the Horn of Africa and are known as sambusa, not samosa. Generally, they are for special occasions and are one of the first things I found when I googled Swahili cooking(Ah, lazy research, I sometimes do it).**

 **2* I do not know Swahili. I'm using google translate, so I apologize for anyone who does know the language and just stare at it as if I'm writing gibberish. It works for the most part, but from my experience of being curious and putting in Spanish and seeing what it looks like, I know that the software is very limited when it comes to sentence structure and grammar. However, I did notice that it works very well for basic sentences and the actual words. It's one of the best translators I've found online, unfortunately. So I kinda have to use it.**

 **For anyone who's curious, this is Ariel's schedule for her first semester(yes I made it up, for the most part, I found no information online for what Starfleet Doctors are required to learn, and I just based this off of my knowledge of current medical requirements, military and things I think people going off to space would need to know):**

 **Mondays & Wen: **  
**Basic Training (0700-1100): This is one of the required classes at Starfleet and is a basic fitness and health class meant to prepare Cadets for Space. It will also cover many of the procedures required of all Starfleet personnel and technology use(how to handle a phaser, comms, etc).**

 **Medical I (1200-1400): Basic course that covers some rudimentary medical methods(check-ups, physicals, emergency aid, and some light surgeries).**  
 **Anatomy I (1600-2000(4-8)): Self explanatory. Covers both alien and human.**  
 **Tuesday & Thursday:**  
 **Bio-Chemistry IV (Ariel took a lot of Chemistry University Level Classes(of all sorts, but adored Bio-chem the most) (0700-1100): Shares the class with Bones(they are lab partners). A mixture of review for the subject, experimentation, and labs. Typically reserved for fourth-year students.**

 **Xenobiology II 1210-1510: self-explanatory. This is taken by medicals and scientists.**  
 **Technological Care & Procedures I (1530-1930(3:30-7:30)): Basically a class that covers all procedures as Doctors, to handle all the advance equipment and specifics of machines used both on earth and on ships. Teaches the basics of Medical kits that are to be carried at all times.**

 **Friday:**

 **Spacial Physics(0800-1200(8-12)): Required class. Covers basic physics to know the mechanics behind space travel.**  
 **History I (1400-1800(2-6)): Self explanatory, but covers Federation history with a lot more detail.**

 **~Moon Witch '96**


	4. Xenobiological Stains

**Xenobiological Stains**

" _You're a juvenile success..."_ _Rebel, Rebel,_ David Bowie, 1974

"Kiddo,"said James Kirk, looking very amused, "You look like hell."

Ariel Lager made it no secret that she hated exercise, and currently had a red, blotchy face and was struggling to keep a steady pace to show for it. Her breath was coming out in harsh gasps, her heart was going off at an alarming rate and she was getting more annoyed at the second. She licked dry, cracked lips, and extended a faint middle finger* to the older Cadet(she was not innocent as many people assumed, she just rarely got annoyed or aggravated enough to make vulgarities).

That got her an honest giggle from the man and she glared at the back of the Cadet in front of her. She wondered faintly why no one had a name that was between theirs and that forced them to keep pace with each other in the four-person line as they went around the track. It didn't help that the idiot was looking completely comfortable and at ease, at the brutal pace they were keeping.

Attractive, athletic and intelligent, worse, _he knew it_ , no wonder so many people hated him.

"Come on, don't be like that. We do this every other morning."he soothed and she rolled her eyes.

Three months had passed since her parents had come to take her away- That meant it had been four total since Ariel had started Basic Training… But each morning they added another twenty laps to their original forty, and they were all expected to finish it within the same time period of forty minutes. In other words, it was brutal and way beyond her. She blinked, glad she had thought to wear a sweatband that day, hair out of her face and up in a top knot to get it off of her neck. But she still felt a few stray hairs tickling her neck in a sweaty mess.

She always considered herself weak physically- Sometimes, both she and Dara had a private joke that they were literally polar opposites. Dara was people smart, she could read and analyze a person so quickly that she often made people very uncomfortable, and she was viciously physically accomplished. She was a kickboxer, knew Krav Maga, and some other martial art that Ariel couldn't pronounce. Ariel was often confused about people, was book smart to the point of social suicide(Dara's playful words) and could hardly run a minute without getting red in the face.

She wasn't clumsy but she didn't have Dara's easy confidence in her body, she was simply not athletic and had come to terms with it a long time ago. Her physical body always held her back, limited where her mind could go. Biologically she needed sleep, to eat, relieve herself and that always interfered with her need for knowledge, to better use her metal potential.

"I… want.." did she have to sound like she had punctured a lung between each word, she wondered, wheezing out, "to.. be...a... Doctor… Not... a ...security ...officer."

Kirk laughed.

"Thank the Federation for that. We would be dead in ten minutes given how much it takes for you to get a red face."

She scowled, tired, sweating and in an ill mood. Kirk was rarely this talkative in the morning, and usually, he just snarked about the instructor's O.C.D tendencies. But today he seemed to be in the mood to pick at her. Usually, there were two people between them in the lineup as well, but they had both dropped out sometime last week.

"Come on Lager, we still have more conditioning* after this."

"I… _hate_ … this."

"Careful there, you actually changed in octave there."

She stayed silent, trying to focus on getting one wobbly leg in front of the other. Kirk snorted, and she resisted the urge to knock him into the Cadet next to him. She at least wished she had Leonard here as a buffer or even Nyota to transfer his teasing, but the Doctor was two rows behind them and Nyota was in the last row of fifty or so Cadets. So she had the least charming bit of Jim to contend with. He continued his 'witty' banter, and Ariel tried to focus on not murdering the man because she did genuinely like him, and she wasn't in the best frame of mind exercising.

He just chuckled, and she focused on her breathing, ignoring his only slightly winded appearance when they stopped to do the rest of their conditioning. They got a quick five-minute cool down before their instructor( _drill sergeant_ ), herded them into a building they were now very painfully, familiar with. It was in microgravity chamber, and they were forced to go through an obstacle course with a partner for today(little exercises in various gravities had littered most of their time at Starfleet and it was a little over midterm at the moment). Of course, they were not allowed to choose one, and she was stuck with a smirking Jim.

"Come on, Lager keep up."

The answering punch to the shoulder while the instructor looked away got a grin from the man, which she simply sighed at.

She felt weak when they piled into the classroom, and the sonic shower was not enough to ease her trembling legs or sore arms(she liked the effectiveness of it, but it did not compare to the steady, heat and steam filled shower of water that seeped into her muscles). But she diligently took notes, drinking small sips of water to make up for the liquid she had lost in the intensive, three-hour conditioning of Basic Training. Kirk was not taking notes, he probably had an insanely good memory to top off his intelligence, she thought with a sigh. It was a good thing his somewhat obnoxious personality kept him from being perfect, or else she would have to murder him, especially this early in the morning and after that torture fest.

She ignored the fact that he was stealing sips from her water bottle. She had long learned in the four months since meeting him that James Kirk had no concept of any personal space or privacy. Dara and Darian had long weeded out anything akin to worry of that, so she let it slid. It wasn't strange to see the man steal food or get in too close that would make people uncomfortable, she was pretty much immune to it, which had the Starfleet Academy rumor mill sure that she and Kirk were A, having sex, B, she was homosexual, or C asexual. The fact that she couldn't simply be friends with him and be heterosexual seemed too much of an impossibility.

"Ariel, it's kinda alarming seeing you change colors like that. It's a good thing you never had sex with me, you wouldn't be able to handle it."

Ariel blinked, looked at Kirk's wiggling brows.

"Three hours is not nearly enough time for me."

She scowled.

"I hope your penis falls off."

That got her a chuckle:

"You're nasty when you exercise."

"And proud of it."she muttered, rotating her ankles to try to get some blood following up and down her leg. You would think in the months they've had this class, Kirk would have noticed that, but considering there used to be two cadets between them before this class, she would let it slide.

Kirk snickered but turned back to the lecture. She resisted the urge to turn over his chair and make him fall into the row in front of them. Both McCoy's slight shake of his head and the fact that the chair was bolted to the ground was all that really prevented her from doing it. Next time she would bring a screwdriver to just do that. She sighed, and typed out the proper procedure of a handling Phaser settings. At the end of class, she feels boneless, and sore, and is dragged out of the class by Kirk's arm around her waist and his dang chuckling.

"I finally found the thing that makes you change your expression."

Ariel suppresses the urge to slap him. She just sighs and nudges his arm away from him.

"Oh come on, Lager. You know you love me."

She snorts.

"Jim, what the hell did you do to annoy her?"chimes in McCoy, frowning at the somewhat mulish expression the girl's face.

It's still blank as ever, but there's a stiffness there that only is there when she is upset. It's been hard for Leonard to learn the girl's face. Little tells that broadcast her shifts in emotions. She was good in a crisis because of it(she already starting an internship on top of her job(something down in the Archive department)), handled patients with a firm stare and while her hands moved a lot, she could transfer that motion into practical motion. She was a steady person in face of a challenge, which he could admire.

Normally, his feelings to such a stiff person would simply go as far as that, admiration for their steadiness. Didn't like the aspects of people who didn't show any expression- couldn't empathize with them, couldn't make sense of them. But he was spending a lot of time with her because of their shared classes, found her oddly endearing when she was trying to learn something and liked how her mind worked. Despite her seemingly bland face, the girl was very compassionate, which of course, made it easier to know her in his book...

She felt rather deeply, he thinks, and either prefers not to show it due to her private nature or simply couldn't express it well. Seeing her bend down to talk down a wailing six-year-old with a broken arm, while trained professionals floundered with their hypos, cemented in his mind that the girl had chosen her profession well and that she was more than her poker face could suggest.

"I've done no such thing, Bones." Here he is all cocksure smiles.

She rolls her eyes. Mccoy is amused at her gesture of annoyance.

"So, Kiddo, what the hell was with your parents?"

Ariel squints and Mccoy huffs at the sensitive topic Kirk has been trying to get out of the girl since her parents had appeared on campus. He does not tell Jim that he knows the gist of the incident, or at least, more than what the gossip mill provided and admires Ariel's ability to avoid the topic.

"Jim." she warns and both Mccoy and Kirk are surprised at the way her voice goes down a tone, warning growl.

Jim frowns steps back with a furrowed brow.

"Look, I know it was you that got assaulted by your parents, I just want to make sure you're alright!"

The girl blinks watches as subconsciously, Kirk touches at his wrist and is startled at the scar* peeking from the edge of his red sleeve. When Kirk is quick to tug his sleeve down, Ariel feels herself add a more depth to the cocky James T. Kirk. Her eyes soften, his unwanted and frankly, annoying pestering suddenly makes sense. The fact that his father was a Hero does not mean everything was sunshine and daisies for him, this she had guessed a long time ago, but she had not expected this.

"I'm fine, Jim."as gently as she can, she places her hand over his hand, over his scar and gives him a gentle squeeze when he tenses, "I was slapped okay? First time in my life by my father. I was more shocked than anything."

He relaxes, eyes softening.

"Ever need to talk about your parents, just ask okay?"

She blinks at the sincerity in his voice- in the gentle encouragement, she sees in his face.

"I'll keep that in mind, Jim."

"Also, keep in mind that this Saturday night is dancing night. You, me, Bones, and illegal in your case- alcohol."

The switch in his voice is sudden and the change of the conversation is deliberate, she feels. But she welcomes it, rolls her eyes playfully at Kirk's assurance of her plans on Saturday.

"Not going to happen."she says bluntly.

"Oh, come on Lager! You've been avoiding my Dance nights all semester! One day Kiddo! All work and no play-"

"Make Ariel a dull girl."she feels herself give a tiny smirk, "I like it that way."

He scowls.

"I'm kidnapping you."

She starts at his firm and confident tone, looks at Mccoy for help. The southern Doctor looks startled himself, looks at Kirk with a furrowed brow.

"Kirk!"it was a growl from Uhura and Ariel turned, her eyes lighting up.

It was a faint twitch of her lips that queued Leonard that the girl was glad to see the young African woman.

"Jenny! So good to see you!" Kirk's arm came to rest around Ariel's shoulders, and Leonard sighed at the automatic motion that Jim did to annoy Uhura.

The other young woman scowled at the young man, and she crossed her arms.

"Shut up. Ariel, would you care to come with me?"

Ariel felt a whoosh of breath escape her, feeling that so early in the morning James Kirk was better dealt with later. After that emotionally packed discovery at the fact that Jim had been abused at one point in his life- Well, she needed some space and so did he. She latched onto her roommate, coming forward and placing an easy hand in the loop of her's, wiggling away from Kirk's arm. The older man pouted, while both she and Nyota made their escape, Ariel giving a jaunty wave over her shoulder.

"Honestly."said Nyota, rolling her eyes as they walked at a brisk pace. "How you stand him is beyond me."

Again, Ariel is stunned at her usually open roommate being so dismissal of Kirk, but she knows first impressions are paramount to her. His constant heckling and teasing probably don't help, she muses.

"Small doses, and not taking everything he says seriously."she said honestly, and her friend just rolled her eyes. "Plus, Leonard helps."

"I can't even take him in small doses."she muttered, long elegant hands as if to fix her hair, but Ariel did not see a single strand out of place.

"He does that simply to get a rise out of you. Ignore it and he isn't that bad."she says simply.

"So he is just an ass."snapped Nyota, rolling her eyes.

"I never said he wasn't."said Ariel with a grave nod.

Nyota snorts and they walk the rest of the way to their dorm chatting about the pros and con of phaser backfire and statistics. One they get to their dorm they head to their desks, take out their homework in preparation for their next scheduled day. Ariel sneaks a quick shower, and she finishes most of what she can before she is dashing out of the room with a quick wave towards her roommate, heading to her next class in an eager step.

"Cadet Lager."says a voice, and Ariel stops, turns, and salutes to Captain Pike easily.

Over the past months, it had become natural to her, a quick press of fingertips to her forehead, a snap of her standard issue boots and a straightened spine. She blinks at the appearance of Commander Spock next to her educational advisor. She repeats the motion to him. His minute nod is done in such a way that he barely inclines his head, but the small sign of acknowledgment is appreciated.

"Captain Pike, Commander Spock."she says softly, blinking at the odd pair.

She knew vaguely they were friends*, Captain Pike had mentioned the Commander once in awhile during their sessions. And Nyota had said that it wasn't odd to see Pike pop into Spock's classroom on occasion to ask him something or confirm plans. But seeing the 'elusive' Vulcan with the Captain was another thing. She wasn't like most of the campus to play 'spot the Vulcan', but Ariel couldn't say that she didn't find herself blinking whenever she saw him. She wasn't startled by aliens per say, she had met plenty before because of her parent's extensive travels but she had never been so acutely aware of someone like she was of him.

Maybe it was because she had never seen a Vulcan before- Maybe it was because he had stopped her parents and she felt a bit hero-worship at someone had soundly shut down her parents so well. She didn't know nor care to know, she only felt vaguely off balance every time she saw him.

"At ease." says the Captain, amused, at her stiff posture.

Ariel relaxes minutely, making a deliberate choice to clutch her PADD with both hands.

"How can I help you, Captain Pike?"she asks, turning so she was facing more in his direction. She doubts that she had been stopped for a conversation with both of them.

"Heading off to Medical I?"he asks, instead of answering her question.

She nods, wondering if Captain Pike had taken the time to memorize her schedule individually or of all his students. Either way, she knows that is a dedication to a job he was taking temporarily. A lot of things like that had shown to her that Pike was a good man, just as she had first initially guessed. The fact that even Jim showed a certain amount of respect only cemented that to her.

"Yes, sir."

"How are your classes?"

"Well, sir."

His eyes sparkle as he smiles, and he chuckles.

"And Cadet Kirk, is he steering you wrong yet?"

She feels her cheeks warm slightly.

"No. sir."

"Very good, Cadet." he rubs absently at his jaw, "I'm glad to see that you're doing well, your grades certainly reflect that. Dismissed."

Ariel blinks at the sudden dismissal, but after checking her PADD, she realizes that she has to run to her next class. She does not miss the quiet compliment.

"Captain, Commander."she says promptly, saluting before she turns and runs.

She is out of earshot when Captain Pike turns to Spock.

"I told you, Spock, it's like I'm speaking to you as a Cadet again."

The Vulcan lifts a brow. Pike laughs.

"She is very controlled, for a human. I may concede to that."says Spock plainly.

Pike smirks before his smiles softens.

"I never did thank you for helping with the mess with her parents, did I?"

"A thank you is not logical in this situation. I did simply what any one of my position would have done."

"Yes, yes, Mr. Spock, however, you prevented a very promising Medical recruit from withdrawing from the Fleet."

This causes Spock to actually stop walking, turning to Pike with a mild surprised look on his face. To Pike, it spoke a lot about how startled he was. He didn't blame him. Pike himself had been aghast when he had spoken to Ariel during their next session after the incident- The girl wasn't having second thoughts, but the situation with her parents was a clear strain for her. He didn't get the full story out of her, but knowing she had withdrawn from Yale to come here gave him a hint. He admired her for rebelling against her parents in a constructive way, which is more than he could say for many people he knew at that age.

"Explain."

"She had a set life, Spock. All her ducks lined in a row and she threw that all out. Entered the Fleet ready to make her own path."

Spock blinks. He sees the parallels to his own life easily. But he sees no point to dwell on that.

"That still does not explain why she would withdraw."

"Humans are fickle things, Mr. Spock. Especially when it comes to learning new habits. And Cadet Lager has just learned to think for her own sake."

"Following that line of logic, you feel if she had spent more times listening to her parents' demands than she would have withdrawn?"

"Yes. Old habits are hard to break."

The Vulcan raises a brow.

"Logically unproductive."

Pike sighs.

"The Human race, in a nutshell, my friend."

 **00000000000**

"You have some sort of green snot on you dress."said Jim, wrinkling his nose.

Ariel frowned, looking down at her usually spotless uniform. There in the left side near her hem. She sighed.

"I guess the suit they gave me had a hole in it."she mutters, glaring at the spot.

"Ah. Yeah well, that's disgusting." said Kirk, shuddering lightly. His chopsticks clicking together in emphasis.

She daintily grabbed some of her chow mein with her own and raised a brow.

"It's not like you haven't been covered in random xenobiological stains, Kirk." she said plainly.

Jim wiggled his brows.

"Yeah but it was the fun kind."

"For the love biscuits- I'm eating, Jim!" snaps Leonard.

Jim pouts.

"But Bones, She's the one with the with some weird stain!"

"And I'm a Doctor. That disgusts me less."

The blond huffed, and moodily munched on his eggroll.

"Ariel where did find this place, it's amazing, darlin'!"

She shrugged, chewing thoughtfully.

"It's a gift."

They continued to eat in silence for a beat. They had some time before their last class, and it was Ariel's turn to pick the food. She had found this small and authentic Chinese place a couple of weeks ago, and had had a craving for it. She was glad neither Mccoy nor Kirk were picky eaters. Kirk was, however, was a loud eater:

"So are going dancing with us or what?"

"No."

He snorts.

"I'll kidnap you."

"Just try, Mr. Kirk."

His eyes sparkled.

"Ooh, challenge accepted Ms. Lager."

She pressed her lips together to stop herself from giggling at his boyishly excited face. Then, Ariel realizes that she has no _real_ reason to temper herself not with her new friends, and allows that giggle to escape.

It feels wonderful.

* * *

 **AN: I do not own Star Trek, this is me just playing in its sandbox, making misshapen sandcastles.**

 **So this chapter nearly marks the halfway point of the year, and I couldn't seem to make it as long as my other chapters. But, I felt it was complete, so here we go. I hope you enjoyed it, and ignore my blatant inclusion of Spock again. I swear he won't make an appearance in the next chapter and will make his official debut(vividly imagines Spock in a blue debutant dress) in chapter six.**

 ***1 I maintain that even after a hundred years, the middle finger will still be a vulgar gesture... Or at least because I couldn't think of a good enough substitute. Also, Ariel isn't innocent or a prude... Dara pretty much took any semblance of that a long time ago, she's just a little bit reserved in comparison than others.**

 ***2 It was implied that Jim's Uncle was abusive, not his mother... Well, his mother was neglectful, but that is neither here nor there. I figured Kirk gets a little sensitive about that when he heard that Ariel was in a similar situation.**

 ***3 It never states how close Spock and Pike are. However, since Spock is his first officer, I'm going out oin a limb to think that they were closer than in OG, were Spock risked a court martial for Pike. So yeah, that, best of buds.**

 **Don't forget to review, and happy reading!**

 **~Moon Witch '96**


	5. Winter In Iowa

**Winter in Iowa**

"Ms. Chapel, can you pass the size six laser knife?" she asked politely, fighting to keep her voice even. Her eyebrow muscle twitches and she struggled to not tap her toes in impatience.

It was very close, considering the fact that her partner, only narrowed her eyes at her at her very polite and civil request.

Christine Chapel was a popular nursing student that shared only one class with Ariel, golden blonde, pretty and very competent at what she did. A fine student and future nurse and very friendly. To most people, at least. At the moment, she was Ariel's mock nurse in a practice surgery in TCP, across the room, Leonard was giving her a sympathetic look, his own mock nurse was far too nervous because the Southern was an actual Doctor, not just a student. He seemed to be dropping everything and made a major mistake on their dummy that had it screeching and poor Leonard to leap in order to 'save' the 'patient's' life.

Christine Chapel seemed to have the opposite problem in this final exercise of the semester, as she was a cadet student on her way to becoming an officer, a head nurse and already had her official degree. She was older than Ariel by five years, give a take a year or two. Taking orders from her was hurting her ego somehow, as she pinched her lips at every order from Ariel's part. That or she was struggling to take the orders from an eighteen-year-old seriously.

It didn't help, that despite all of her generally good qualities, Chapel, got Ariel Lager's nerves like no other.

It was probably because the feelings were completely mutual and as far as Ariel was concerned, Chapel had started the little feud at the beginning of the year with cryptic remarks that sounded a little too close to what her parents would tell her for comfort. It was little incidents throughout the entire semester that had instilled a deep-seated dislike for her fellow was stupid and childish but Ariel couldn't help the resentment the more Chapel talked to her.

The current exercise, their _final,_ in addition to Chapel's attitude was having Ariel fantasizing of a delicious tiramisu that Nyota had promised her as soon as the day was done, imaging each and every layer of soaked coffee, of decadent whipped cream as she went about the final with painful focus.

The older woman narrowed her eyes at her again, almost to slits. She smiled, all teeth, something that looked feral and thrust her the tool that Ariel had asked for. Ariel took it carefully away from the woman's perfectly manicured hands, as she had shoved the blade part towards her. It was not on, of course, or Chapel was not genuinely out to hurt her, but the woman's finger was dangerously close to the small, glittering touchscreen display. An action that was beyond disrespectful. Ariel did not return her smile, forcing her own urge to frown at the rude gesture.

"Thank you," she said evenly, instead. She fought her impulse to snatch the number six knife back quickly, and instead pulled it delicately into the palm of her hand.

Christine Chapel's smile was sugar sweet. But it was the type of sugar that preclude the taste of something poisonous. Like ancient the ancient berry, belladonna.

"You're welcome… Kiddo," she said simply, mockingly.

Ariel blinked and raised a single brow.

"I would prefer you don't call me that, Ms. Chapel," she replied, eyes narrowing just slightly as she forced her brow to relax, "That is a name of affection reserved for two people."

The older woman frowned.

"Two?"

"Yes," she said simply, going back to her dummy and carefully applying the laser in the direction she had painstakingly drawn out a few minutes prior.

Leonard didn't often call her Kiddo- he, unlike Jim, had no taste for nicknames, but it would pop out on occasion, along with his ever-increasing affectionate drawl of 'darlin' that he favored more than anything. Ms. Chapel was quiet for a moment, her brows furrowed, which Ariel observed from the corner of her eye before focusing completely focusing on the mock surgery in front of her. Unlike in Anatomy, which had a focus on exotic, unknown aliens, they did not use real cadavers for TPC mock surgeries, as it was rare that in this modern age they perform something so invasive as to cut someone open just to learn. At least for a species that they knew so much about. Bio Scans thought enlightening on most species could be foiled in the face of another's natural blocks. It was why an autopsy was taught, if the situation arose, a Doctor of the fleet would not be unprepared or caught ignorant…

But in this case, the dummy was nearly as good as a real human cadaver, anyway.

When Ariel was finished, she stepped back and watched as Chapel pursed her lips. Ariel ignored her, waiting for their instructor, Commander Fetel to observe their work and provide her final grade. Fetel was a tallish woman of about fifty or so, thin as a reed and a face like a cat, narrow and always on alert. She walked crisply towards them, PADD in hand and with a vague smile on her face.

"Cadets," she said, easily, a deep and husky tone, " Let's see whether or not you kept this bad boy alive."

With expert grace, Commander Fetel examined their 'patient', poking and prodding, looking through its diagnostic screen. She tsked.

"Chapel, good work. Clean up your precision and endurance, after the tenth incision your hands started to wobble."

She then turned to Ariel and smiled, then she simply patted her arm before she walked off to the next set of Cadets. Ariel felt a faint heat in her face and struggled to stop the smile on her face. Commander Fetel was not one to shower praises, only correct mistakes. The fact that she hadn't mentioned a thing to Ariel was as if her instructor had just gushed over her. She preneed silently at the praise, a lump on her throat at the reassurance that she knew what she was doing.

Across the room, Leonard gave her a thumbs up, a faint smirk on his face as Fetel ground into his partner. Ariel's own partner was scowling, a narrow look to her pale blue eyes. Ariel once again ignored her, a stark feeling of competition rising in her at the openly hostile look directed towards her. Ariel simply raised a brow, mimicking the same way Commander Spock had challenged her parents. The older woman only narrowed her eyes and turned away.

If Ariel's smile at her back was a little feral and a little too satisfactory, no one could call her on it. It was after class, that McCoy approached her.

"What the heck did you do to Chapel, kiddo?"

Ariel shrugged.

"I haven't the faintest idea," She answered honestly, feeling a sort of social confusion as she watches the other blond storm away.

Leonard raised a brow and slung an arm around her shoulder. Slung it really quick, large hand resting easily on her small shoulder. A habit he had gotten into, a protective gesture on a such a delicate girl. He wasn't nearly as bad as Jim who hung off her at every opportunity(it was to both annoy Uhura and because he simply wanted too). But then again the southern man wasn't nearly as attention starved. But it was easy to be tactical with the girl. She had no perception of her own space and thought stiffly mannered, was easily the most affectionate accepting person he knew.

"Is the big bad nursing student bullying you?" he sounded much too amused at the prospect. It wasn't because he thought her being bullied, but because he knew Chapel and he knew Ariel very well.

Chapel was nice enough, especially to him( _'so nice to see a good Doctor, McCoy_ '), did good work as far as her actual abilities. The fact that she didn't get along with Ariel was a surprise. Then again, he knew that Ariel wasn't very easy with people, despite her endless compassion. It was hidden behind that stiffness, that unease with people, behind that still face that left little to no room for connection to most.

Other than a select few, her poker face attitude did not endear her to many. Not to mention her academic excellence. She seemed not to mind as much as he thought a girl just out of high school would be, but then again, she had a good standing with some students and maybe that was enough for her. Not only that… He had seen how compassionate the girl was, she did indeed very much want to help people. He had trouble seeing her disliking anyone. It just wasn't in her nature.

"No. It is an Academic rivalry started on her part," she sniffed.

He smirked, fought the urge to ruffle her hair, but she wasn't a child, much as McCoy was very aware of their age difference.

"If she actually gives you trouble, you know who to ask, right darlin'?"

Ariel looked at him, dark blue eyes flickering to him, a firm look, that looked almost offended.

"I might never have gone to school before this, but I can handle a rival."

Leonard did not doubt it. She didn't fight back per say- but she did push back. She was learning to assert herself bit by bit. He smiles and does not stop himself in ruffling her hair. She takes it well enough, only rolls her eyes and barely suppresses her smile. Progress, which McCoy would take as a small victory. If he ever got the girl to beam- well he might just click his heels together and have a bit of a swig of Jim's extra strong flask in celebration.

 **000000000000000**

Ariel had never expected the semester to end so quickly. Oh well, she had thought that seven months would feel longer. But it was December already and she was dressed crisply in her formal uniform, sitting uncomfortably for the closing ceremony. It was, thankfully, not as long nor as pomp-filled as the opening one, but a rather less formal affair that consisted of a few closing words from the higher staff, and a stern warning about behavior over their three-week break, and how it reflected back on the 'Fleet'. A break that had Ariel more than a little nervous.

After all, at first, she thought she was to be wandering around with Dara for a month. That was wrought with danger and possibility of ending up in some ditch somewhere naked(my, had that been a fun weekend and had nearly cost Ariel her little freedom in the race Dara had had to race her back home in time before her parents woke) Apparently, the dorms were being renovated over the break and Ariel had no choice but to leave for the Winter holidays. She did not want to mooch off of Dara or D.J. vast wealth with no housing available over the break, but she had little choice. She was not pleased, was running out of money, when Jim came to her rescue:

" _You're broke?"_

 _Ariel blinked, looking away from her PADD. It was set to her personal bank account that she had set up a little bit after coming of age. She had tried to save money, why she wasn't sure, but grateful for it nonetheless now that she was determining her own fate and helping her somewhat in this serious rebellion. All of her money was spent on her supplies and as much as her job in the archives was helping, she wasn't exactly rolling in credits. She brought it to her chest and looked at the curious face of her friend. Her face went warm, hot really, in her embarrassment. She knew that with her pale complexion, she was as bright red as their uniform._

" _And if I am?" she asked, not proud, but a matter of fact. She looked straight at him, trying not back down because he wasn't her parents and he was instead her_ _ **friend**_ _. A friend would not berate her nor judge her too harshly._

 _He frowned._

" _Where are you staying, all the dorms are being renovated, right?"_

 _She looked away, foot tapping rapidly. Jim grabbed her arm- not as if she was made of glass but firmly and in a way to grab her attention._

" _Why the hell didn't you say anything?" here, Jim squeezed softly in question and concern, "Kiddo, I need an extra hand around my Place this winter. Pays crap, but it has a shuttle flight and room and board included. Even meals. You down?"_

 _Ariel looked back at Jim, blinking rapidly._

" _Yes, thank you, Jim," and after a brief moment of hesitation, she lunged forward and hugged him around his neck._

 _He took it with a startled laugh, lifting her off her feet and clinging to her close. He ignored it when he heard her give a little sniffle, or when she buried her face in his neck in a moment of just losing it._

Now, she was nervous about going back to Riverside… It was incredibly close to her mother and father's home. A short shuttle ride and they could try to drag her away. But, no one really knew she was going there, of course. She had only mentioned to Nyota that she was going west to work with Jim because she didn't want her newest friend to worry, even if the mention of Jim had made Nyota scowl at her before she muttered if she needed to escape to find her way to her grandparents home in Africa. She feels a now familiar weight fall across her shoulder, and she barely blinks at the sight of Jim, grinning ear to ear.

"Got everything?"

She allows herself a tiny smile.

"Yes, just have to pick up my stuff, already packed."

Jim grinned, somehow, wider.

"Great! I got our shuttle tickets. And all my shit is home. I only grabbed the clothes on my back when I signed up. And my bike. But I gave it to a random guard. I wonder if he left it in the star-port impound lot..."

"I'll guess we'll find out."

He grin, again, gets larger.

"I guess we will."

 **OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

Jim T. Kirk always had mixed feelings about Riverside, Iowa. Once upon time, it had been hell, beatings and sour words screamed at him through his Uncle's voice. Once the events of Kalos 5 had happened… Well. Somehow he kept coming back. College, everything, somehow he always ended back on the Kirk family farm, the last connection he had to a man that had become a large shadow over him... Over his entire life. He had never known George Kirk, only his ghost, only the glory of a martyr. Not the man, never known his favorite color, his favorite type of drink- Nothing. Just the last few minutes of his life, and subsequently, the first few minutes of Jim's birth, mattered to anyone, even to his distant mother.

If you asked anyone of why Jim kept coming back to the farm, it was because he actually made a killing in the fancy restaurant business. Those five-star places that didn't use a replicator, but actual produce and meat, which was something very few people bothered with nowadays. He had a small, but very profitable business that was his actual livelihood.

If he asked himself, he was honest enough in his mind to say that he didn't know why.

But it wasn't as if he took much time to ask himself questions.

Too much to do.

"This will be your room," he said, to Ariel, who was looking about the attic with a furrowed brow, "Not much, but it's better than nothing."

The stoic girl gave him a tiny nod.

"Thank you," she said calmly, looking around with faint interest, putting down her large case, and her violin one. She looked neither annoyed nor disgusted by the dusty space, so Jim took that as a plus.

"You play that often?"

"Uhura insists I do," she says, and ah, there was a smile. Small, but it was still a smile.

Jim chuckles.

"Still won't tell me her full name?"

Ariel shrugs.

"It's up to her," she said softly, "And it's sort of funny to see how stubborn she is."

He snorts but nods in agreement. It was one of the reasons why he constantly annoyed their fellow cadet…

"The attic door locks," he tells her, calmly, heading for the door.

"Jim."

He turns. She's standing there, brows furrowed, face trying to be expressive. Trying to show something good to him. But she's spent most of her life accepting, beating down her emotions. She's not him, who constantly beat back and railed in rage against those who wished to control him. It wasn't a negative thing but showed how much courage she had to go against her demons. Less practice, less will… More courage in that single act. She gives the smallest smile, just an upturn of her lips. But it changes her already pretty features, makes them softer, makes them… Beautiful. It's a real pity it doesn't happen more often.

"Thank you. And I'm not going dancing."

Eyes, dark and oh so blue, sparkle. The most alive thing about her. It was first driving him to keep talking to her. Those eyes. Someone could drown in them. Part of Jim, a very small part, wishes she would let him do the honors. He wants to be the first. He was not lying when he told her they could set each other's world on fire. She's pragmatic enough to not expect a standing relationship to last for a lifetime from him, but she's also the kind of person he wouldn't mind taking his time with to understand both body and mind inside out. But Ariel is a delicate girl, for all her masks, terribly delicate in emotions and in her current state of mind. He respected that. Could give her space to grow and flourish into herself.

"We'll see Lager. We'll see."


End file.
